CO

CD

CO

h«y«EKEKIU(m^4dS0r

THE REIGN OF JESUS

HOLY REDEEMER Wjttlff WINDSOR

THE REIGN OF JESUS

BEING AN ABRIDGMENT
OF THE WORK OF THE
BLESSED JEAN EUDES

BY

THE ABBE GRANGER

HONORARY CANON OF BAYEUX
FORMERLY MISSIONER OF NOTRE DAME DE LA DELIVRANDE

TRANSLATED FROM THE SECOND FRENCH EDITION

BY

K. M. L. HARDING

i£ I library!

* Volumus, Domine Jesus,
Te regnare super nos '

%is-^

R. & T. WASHBOURNE, LTD.

PATERNOSTER ROW, LONDON
AND AT MANCHESTER, BIRMINGHAM, AND GLASGOW
BENZIGER BROTHERS! NEW YORK, CINCINNATI, CHICAGO
LAll rights reserved] J$X.r

HOLY REDEEMER LJ^RY, WINDSOR

&MI Obstat.

F. THOS. BERGH,

Censor Depdtatds.

imprimatur.

EDM. CAN. SURMONT,

Vicarius Generalis.

Westmonasterii,

Die 6 Decetnbfis, 191 1.

TRANSLATIONS OF

LETTERS OF APPROBATION FOR

THE FRENCH EDITION

From Pere Le Dore, Superior General of the Congregation
of Jesus and Mary, August 6, 1909 :

.... You tell me that the first edition of the Abridg-
ment of the " Reign of Jesus " has rapidly sold out and
that you propose to publish a second . I rejoice much at
this good news. The alacrity with which the public has
hastened to procure your work testifies both to the
veneration in which the Blessed Jean Eudes is held, and
to the esteem inspired by the doctrine of the Life and
Reign of Jesus in Christian souls — which doctrine you
have scrupulously respected in your abridgment of the
book of the Blessed Jean Eudes.

Our blessed Founder, in the opinion of the most Eminent
Cardinals whose duty it was to study his works pre-
liminarily to the Cause of Beatification, is a remarkable
Master in all the questions which concern the Christian
and priestly life. Now his most finished work with
respect to the Christian life is incontestably the " Life
and Reign of Jesus in the Soul." Cardinal Satolli, in the
Church of Gesu at Rome, and the Cure of Notre Dame of
Caen at Tourailles, in the diocese of Seez, both chose this
work as the subject of their panegyric on the Blessed
Jean Eudes. The spiritual doctrine which is there de-
veloped with so much learning and piety merits for its
author a high place of dignity amongst the most celebrated
spiritual and mystic writers. By conforming his spiritual
life to the teaching of the Blessed Jean Eudes, a soul will
inevitably attain rapidly to the greatest holiness, living
the life of Jesus.

Your abridgment retains the merits of the work of the
Blessed Jean Eudes, and by the form you have given it
you have succeeded in bringing it within the reach of the

vi Translations of Letters

greater number of the faithful. Your readers will be
nourished with the marrow of the doctrine of the Blessed
Jean Eudes ; I can, therefore, but thank and congratulate
you for having undertaken this work and for proposing
to give the public a second edition. The Blessed Jean
Eudes will bless this new edition as he blessed the first.

From Pere Le Dore, May 5, 19 10 :

... I thank you very affectionately for sending me
the second edition of your excellent book, the abridgment
of " The Reign of Jesus," by the Blessed Jean Eudes.
All the spiritual doctrine of our pious Founder is ex-
pounded in this valuable volume. In our day, as well as
in the lifetime of the Blessed Jean Eudes, this doctrine,
so profoundly Christian, is the admiration of the learned.
I have heard this admiration reiterated a thousand times
by eminent theologians, by a large number of Bishops,
and especially by the most Eminent Cardinals, members
of the Sacred Congregation of Rites.

Besides, the welcome given to your first edition, so
quickly exhausted, attests that souls have known how
to appreciate and enjoy these thoughts and sentiments.

In aiding, by your publications, to make Jesus live and
reign in souls, you are but hastening the accomplishment
of the programme of our Supreme Pontiff, Pius X. :
" Instaurare omnia in Christo."

The following is the translation of an article from the
pen of Monsieur Henri Joly* of the " Institut," which
appeared in La Croix, October, 1910 :

Here are two works of which I ought to have spoken
some time ago. Both are by ecclesiastics who address
themselves, primarily though not exclusively, to their
brethren of the clergy. . . . The first is an edition, most
cleverly compiled, of the finest work of the Blessed Jean
Eudes. . . . The Abbe Granger, Honorary Canon of
Bayeux, has had the happy idea of choosing amongst the
writings of his holy fellow-countryman the most char-
acteristic of all, " The Reign of Jesus," and offers it to
the meditation of devout souls. In spite of the beatifica-

* M. Henri Joly is the editor of the French Series of Lives of the
Saints, " Les Saints."

Translations of Letters vii

tion of 1909, in spite of the numerous festivals celebrated
on that occasion in so many of our dioceses, in spite
also of more than one attempt to popularize his works,
Pere Eudes is not known as he deserves. I leave on one
side the share he took in the religious revival of France,
with S. Vincent de Paul, with the Pere de Condren, with
Monsieur Olier ; it is so great that he who has not closely
studied it is not really acquainted with all our seventeenth
century. But Canon Granger's publication is a book of
prayer and Christian practice adapted to all times and
to all needs. The book does not only mark a memorable
date, but it is valuable on account of its contents, which
deal with what is fundamental, universal, and conse-
quently, one may say, eternal. Like the " Imitation,"
like the " Life of Jesus," by S. Bonaventura, like the
" Exercises of S. Ignatius," and like the " Introduction
to the Devout Life " of S. Francis of Sales, it deserves to
be placed in the hands of all. It resembles and yet differs
from these others by its lofty austerity. There is hardly
a chapter which does not deal with the favourite idea of
the great revivalist, that the mission of the Christian,
whether priest or layman, is to continue the Christ, to
form Him in each soul and in all the acts of one's life.
To the beautiful commentary we owe him on the per-
petual sacrifice which the Priest offers in his own person
is added an explanation no less remarkable on the essential
association of the faithful with the Priest ; the former,
for instance, not only being present at the Holy Sacrifice
of the Mass, but doing what the Priest does — that is to
say, offering " with him and with Jesus Christ the Sacri-
fice offered to God on the altar."

Assuredly there are many thoughts in " The Reign of
Jesus," but this is the chief and leading thought which
is to be found in all the explanations and meditations of
the Blessed Jean Eudes.

Canon Granger has quite understood, however, that
in the work of his author there was a certain prolixity.
He has therefore abridged and simplified, but with much
discretion and tact, and the result of his labour is a
charming little volume, which deserves to be found on
the bookshelf and above all in the hands of all those
desirous of advancing the "Reign of Jesus Christ.

INTRODUCTION

Before teaching, our Lord Jesus Christ began by putting
into practice what He was to enjoin on others. Thus
the holy Gospel is but the manifestation of the life of
Jesus Christ — a life resplendent with holiness and light
as was fitting for the only-begotten Son of the Father.

The holy Founders of Orders have followed in the
steps of the Master. The Rules of S. Benedict and of
S. Francis of Assisi were the programme of their own
lives before becoming the programme of the lives of their
disciples.

In the same way, those books which set forth a method
of spiritual life, approved by the Church, have been
lived before being published. Thus, the admirable book
of the " Exercises of S. Ignatius " is but the expression
of his soldier's soul, striving by strategy to attain the
final goal, the glory of God.

What is stranger still, the " Introduction to the Devout
Life" existed already, unknown to its author, before it
assumed the form of a book. S. Francis of Sales was
quite surprised at having compiled this masterpiece. He
had only to put in order and to complete the counsels he
had given, out of the treasure of his heart, to meet the
needs of his penitent.

" The Reign of Jesus in the Christian Soul " might
well be entitled " The Inner Life of the Blessed Jean
Eudes." For if it be the outline of his teaching and of
his method of direction, it is still more the most true and
perfect expression of his soul. He was only thirty-six
years old when he wrote it, and he determined to make it
always his rule of life.

" The Reign of Jesus " is the first and the most im-
portant of the writings of the Blessed Jean Eudes. He
had published an outline of it in 1636 with the title of
" Spiritual Exercises," and the following year the com-
plete work appeared.

x Introduction

" This first edition shows us ' The Reign of Jesus '
written straight off with such precision of thought and ex-
pression that no revision has ever been necessary "*

" The Reign of Jesus " had from its first appearance
an immense success. Numerous editions appeared in
turn at Caen, at Rouen, and at Paris. Poisson, the
famous printer of Caen, published the fifth edition in
1644, and the eighth in 1648.

The Blessed Jean Eudes did not desire to write a book
which should be read only, but one which should be put
in practice. He had destined it for the faithful in
general, but later he enjoined it as a manual of spiritual
life on the priests of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary,
on the nuns of Notre Dame de Charite, and also on the
students of the theological seminaries, which he had
founded in Normandy and Brittany. This little master-
piece is thus the first of seminarists' manuals.

" The Reign of Jesus " is also of high importance in
the history of devotion. It shows us the path by which
the holy apostle reached the Immaculate Heart of Mary
and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

There is one soul above all others in which the life of
Jesus blossomed in all its perfection ; there is one heart
which, in preference to all others, has ever been His
kingdom of predilection : the soul, the heart, of the
Virgin Mary. The Blessed Jean Eudes composed the
Office of the Holy Heart of Mary to celebrate this delicious
mystery. " Come, let us adore Jesus reigning in the
Heart of Mary ; He is our Love and our Life."f

The Heart of the Incarnate Word is, then, the
real source of love and the principle of our life. The
Blessed Jean Eudes repeats this again and again. He
desires that our gaze should be unceasingly fixed on this
divine Heart in order that we may contemplate its
greatness, offer its adorations and thanksgivings to the
infinite Majesty of God, reproduce in ourselves its holy
dispositions, and imitate its admirable virtues. He is,
then, truly the father of the devotion to the Sacred Heart.
He is to expound its doctrine, explain the grounds for it,
and outline its observance : he is truly the doctor of
* " CEuvres Completes," i. 68. + " Invitatory."

Introduction xi

the devotion. He preaches it in his Retreats and
Missions : he is its first apostle. And, lastly, he composes,
in honour of the Heart of Jesus, an Office still more
beautiful than his Office of the Most Pure Heart of Mary.
' ' Come, ' ' he says to us in the ' ' Invitatory, " " Come and
let us adore the most loving Heart of Jesus, our Love and
our Life." For this reason he is called by Leo XIII. the
founder of the liturgical cultus of the Holy Hearts of Jesus
and Mary.

" The Reign of Jesus " is, in short, the fundamental
work of the Blessed Jean Eudes. " We find in it con-
densed, with a luminous precision, his ideas on the
Christian life, its nature, its foundation, and its complete
development in the exercise of the virtues. No other
of his works presents the same advantages."*

The teaching of the Blessed Jean Eudes is that of
S. Paul, his chosen master. It originates entirely in this
principle, which he borrowed from the great Apostle :
The Christian life is but the continuation of the life of
Jesus Christ on earth, consequently a true Christian
should be another Jesus Christ.

The point, therefore, is to develop in us this divine
life of which we received the germ at our Baptism.

To renounce sin, the spirit of the world, our self-love,
to destroy in ourselves the old man, this is the first part
of the programme.

To fix our eyes unceasingly on Jesus, to love Jesus,
to imitate Jesus, to unite ourselves to Jesus in prayer, in
action, and in suffering — in a word, to form Jesus in us,
that is the second part.

" Our desire, our study, our chief occupation," the
Blessed Jean Eudes will say to us, " should be to form
Jesus in us — that is to say, to make Him live and reign
in us and to make to live and reign in us His spirit, His
devotion, His feelings, His inclinations, and His dis-
positions. It is to this aim that all our religious exercises
should tend. It is the work which God has put into our
hands in order that we may labour at it unceasingly."

Such is the sole aim of the Blessed Jean Eudes in all
the pages of his book — a real masterpiece of doctrine and

* " CEuvres Completes," vol. i..

xii Introduction

piety. He makes it a complete manual within the reach
of all souls. One finds in it :

A doctrinal treaty on the Christian life.

A method of spiritual life.

A rule of life which embraces all the actions and all
the circumstances of our existence.

A selection of meditations and devotional exercises.

The abridgment of " The Reign of Jesus " reproduces in
its integrity the teaching of the Blessed Jean Eudes on the
spiritual life, his method and rules for spiritual direction.

Plan. — The plan of the work has been respected, but
reduced to three parts :

i . The nature and foundations of the Christian life.

2. What one should do each day, each week, each
month, each year.

3. Prayers and devotions.

Omissions. — An abridgment implies some suppressions.
These suppressions deal solely with repetitions, with too
lengthy reasonings, with pious practices which have become
out of date — such as the Rosary of the Blessed Trinity.

In this new edition we have done justice to very reason-
able demands by reproducing the Elevations, either in
their proper place in the body of the work, or else at the
end, in the third part, in order not to impede the unfold-
ing of the doctrine.

Additions. — To fill some gaps, some extracts have been
borrowed from the other works of the Blessed Jean
Eudes. The annual Retreat has thus been with advantage
rendered more complete.

Summaries and Explanations. — The teaching of the
Blessed Jean Eudes, as well as his spiritual counsels, are
summed up in the summaries placed at the beginning of
each chapter. So that one may see in a few lines the
ensemble of his teaching.

The different programmes for the day, the week, the
month, the year, may seem at first sight confused, but
the short explanations given will show how they har-
monize one with another and are the completion one of
the other.

In the same way with the pious exercises proposed by
the Blessed Jean Eudes. It was useful to indicate their

Introduction xiii

origin, to show their importance, to assign them a place
in the programme of our spiritual life.

Lastly, a few quotations enable us to establish a com-
parison between " The Reign of Jesus," the writings of
S. Gertrude, and the teaching of Father Faber, in his
admirable book " All for Jesus." A more thorough
study- would show us how the Blessed Jean Eudes is at
once the disciple of the great Benedictine, and the master
of the learned English writer. All three have for their
motto : " Jesum volo, nil amplius " — " I desire Jesus, and
naught save Jesus."

Style. — The manner of writing of the Blessed Jean
Eudes has been scrupulously respected. " It has sufficed
to correct a few antiquated terms, to modify a few archaic
forms of expression, to omit a few superlatives, and to
divide here and there over-lengthy sentences."*

It has been found useful, however, to avoid confusion,
or to bring out the leading idea, to indicate the connec-
tion of the developments by sub-headings, or by figures,
or sometimes simply by a new line, or by the use of
italics — rarely by a change in the wording.

This adaptation of the original text had as its object
to render appropriate to the needs of our own day a book
written for Christians of the seventeenth century. May
it in this new form recover its former popularity ! It is
to the following categories of persons that the Blessed
Jean Eudes may confidently offer " The Reign of Jesus " :

i. To every true Christian who has the consciousness
of his dignity as child of God and member of Jesus Christ,
and who wishes to develop in himself the divine life he
received in Holy Baptism. What an incentive for him
to be able to say with all truth : " However insignificant,
however poor I may be, I continue the life of Jesus
Christ, the life of my God."

2. To those pious souls who receive frequently the
God of the Eucharist. The Blessed Jean Eudes will
teach them how to seek and how to find Jesus in all His
states and in all His mysteries ; how to recall to Him
unceasingly their thoughts and their love ; how to unite
themselves to His Sacred Heart ; how to pray, to work,
* "(Euvres Completes," vol. i. xxxii.

xiv Introduction

to suffer, and to die, as He, Himself, prayed, worked,
suffered, and died.

3. To the friends of the Sacred Heart, who would
render love for love to the God Who loved them first ;
who long to make of His Heart their centre, their refuge,
their paradise, their life, their all. " The Reign of
Jesus " will be for such the true Golden Book or, as has
been said, the Manual of Perfect Love.

4. Above all to the Priest, who, according to the thought
of S. Thomas, acts, in his ministry, in the Person of
Christ : " Sacerdos novae Legis in persona Christi operatur."

Thus : (1) At the Altar, he continues the sacrifice of
Jesus Christ on the Cross ; he is at once Priest and victim
with Jesus Christ.

(2) At the Font he continues the work of the regenera-
tion of souls by water and by the Holy Spirit in the name
and power of Jesus Christ.

(3) In the holy tribunal of penance he continues the
ministry of reconciliation of Jesus Christ, by remitting
sins in the name and by the authority of Jesus Christ.

(4) In the pulpit he continues the teaching of Jesus
Christ, preaching His Gospel, creating and developing
Faith in souls.

(5) By the Divine Office he continues the prayer of
Jesus Christ, speaking in His name and in the name of
His Church.

(6) At the head of the Church, of a diocese, of a parish
he continues the rule of Jesus Christ, with His authority,
with His spirit, with His grace, each according to his
functions and his place in the hierarchy of the Church.

What a noble satisfaction for a Priest to have the
consciousness of privileges so glorious ! But is it not
his duty to continue the life of Jesus Christ in all the
actions of his life, and to be — yet more than the ordinary
Christian — another Jesus Christ on earth ?

Volumus, Dominejesu
Te regnare super nos.

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, may Thy kingdom come !

Caen,
The Feast of the Im?naculate
Conception.

DEDICATION

TO

JESUS AND TO MARY,

HIS MOST HOLY MOTHER

O Jesus, my Lord, and my God, prostrate before Thy
supreme Majesty, conscious of my nothingness, having laid
down at Thy feet my understanding, my self-love, and all
that belongs to me, and having given myself up to the
power of Thy divine Spirit and of Thy holy love ; in the
infinite immensity of Thy Spirit, in the immense depth of
Thy love, in all the virtues and the power of Thy two-fold
Nature, Divine and Human, I adore Thee, I love Thee,
and I glorify Thee in all Thy states, mysteries, qualities,
virtues, and in all that Thou art in respect of Thy Eternal
Father, of Thyself, of Thy Holy Spirit, of Thy sacred
Humanity, of Thy blessed Mother, of all the Angels, of all
Thy Saints in Heaven and on earth, and of all created things.

Especially I revere and adore Thee as He Who is our
true Life, as King of kings, as Holy of holies, as our
Sanctifier, and as our Sanctification.

I adore the purpose and the great and ardent desire
which Thou hast to live and reign in my soul and in all
Christian souls. I humbly ask pardon for all the ob-
stacles I have placed in the way of Thy purpose until
now, both in myself and in others. In reparation of my
offence, and in order to help forward the fulfilment of
Thy desire, I give and sacrifice myself wholly to Thee,
O my Jesus, solemnly protesting in presence of Heaven
and earth that I wish to live solely in order to labour
unceasingly to form Thee in my soul and in all the souls
it shall please Thee to entrust to me, and to make Thee
to live and reign in us ; beseeching Thee with all my heart
that all my thoughts, words, and labours may be directed
to that end.

But above all, this little work, which I have compiled,
xv

xvi Dedication

to help those souls which belong to Thee, to establish in
themselves the life and reign of Thy holy love ; it is
Thine, O good Jesus, and it is Thou Who art the source
of it and its true author, for I renounce with all my
strength what there may be in it which comes from me
and not from Thee. I desire also that it may be entirely
Thine ; that Thou mayst be its only aim as Thou, with
Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit, hast been its only
source. For this reason, in honour of, and in union with,
the same love with which it came from Thee, and with
which Thou gavedst it to me, I give it back to Thee,
offering, dedicating, and consecrating it as a homage to
Thine adorable life, Thy love, "and all that Thou art.
In honour of, and in union with, the love with which Thou
gavedst us Thyself — Thou Who art the true Book of Life
and Love — I desire also to give and dedicate this book
to all those souls who desire to love Thee, particularly
to those which Thou hast entrusted to me in a special
way.

And because I cannot look on Thee, O my Lord Jesus,
without seeing her who is seated at Thy right hand ;
who formed Thee, and made Thee to reign in her so per-
fectly, I hail and revere her as Thy Mother, all worthy
of honour, Mother of life and love, and as my sovereign
lady and my dearest mother, to whom I belong.

Therefore, O my Saviour, after having offered and
consecrated this work to Thee, I beg Thee to permit me
to offer and consecrate it to Thy blessed Mother, as a
homage to the life of love which Thou hast in her and she
in Thee.

I offer it, therefore, to Thee, O Mother of life and love ;
I dedicate and consecrate it to thee with all the affections
of my heart, with all that, by God's mercy, has been, is,
or ever will be in me. O Mother of blessing, deign to
bless the labour and the labourer, and all thdse who shall
make use of it. Offer them to Thy Son Jestis, the Source
of all benediction. Pray Him to bless them and to con-
secrate them wholly to His glory and to His pure love.

O good Jesus, this book is filled with many acts and
exercises of praise, love, contrition, humility, and other
Christian virtues ; imprint them, I beseech Thee, in my

Dedication xvii

heart and in the hearts of those who shall read it. On
my side I offer Thee all these Acts and exercises, with
the intention and desire to perform them now and always,
with my whole heart and mind, as I, at this moment,
write them in this book, where they will remain printed
for ever. I offer them for myself and for all mankind,
especially for those who shall read this book and still
more particularly for those whom Thou hast entrusted
to my care. Fulfil this, my desire, O my sweet Jesus,
in Thy great goodness, by the love which Thou hast for
Thy most dear Mother and by the love which she bears
Thee. Look upon and accept, in virtue of the intention,
which, by Thy grace, I have at this moment, all these
Acts and exercises as if I practised them continually by
an actual effort of my mind and heart.

Lastly, O God of blessing, take this book under Thy
protection ; guard it safe from its enemies and Thine ;
bless it, sanctify it, fill it with Thy Spirit and with Thy
divine virtue ; be Thou Thyself in it, so that by it, or
rather by Thee, Thou mayest be blessed, loved, and
glorified in all those who shall read it. Destroy in it all
there may be of me and leave in it nothing but what is
of Thee. Bless all the words in it, so that they may be
so many Acts of blessing, love, and praise to Thee, so
many sources of blessing and grace to those who shall
read them ; and so many darts of sacred fire which shall
pierce their hearts, and kindle in them the holy flames of
Thy love.

PREFACE

WHICH IT IS NECESSARY TO READ FOR THE COM-
PREHENSION AND USE OF THIS BOOK

Jesus, God, and Man, is all in all things, according
to the saying of the great Apostle : " Omnia in
omnibus Christus " (Col. iii. 2). But He should be,
in a special way, everything in all Christians, as
the head is everything in the members, and the
soul everything in the body. Our study and our
principal occupation should be to strive to form
and establish Him in ourselves ; to make Him to
live and reign in us, so that He may be our life,
our sanctification, our strength, our treasure, our
glory, and our all ; or, rather, that He may live in
us, that He may be sanctified and glorified in us,
that He may establish in us the reign of His
Spirit, of His love, and of His other virtues.

In order to attain this end I offer you this
book containing the exercises necessary to true
Christians who desire to serve God in spirit and
in truth. I have given it a double title : " The
Life and Reign of Jesus in Christian Souls." I
call it, in the first place, " The Life of Jesus in
Christian Souls,"* because its first and chief object
is to show how Jesus should be. living in all Chris-
tians ; how Christians are on the earth only for the

* The Blessed Jean Eudes had published his book under this
title, " The Life and Reign of Jesus in Christian Souls." When he
speaks of it, he generally calls it "The Reign of Jesus." It is by
this title that it is usually designated, and it is the one we have
adopted.

xix

xx Preface

purpose of continuing the holy life of Jesus ; how
the most important aim and the chief occupation
of a Christian should be to strive to form and
establish Jesus in himself, according to the desire
expressed by the Apostle : " Forme tur Christus in
vobis " (Gal. iv. 19). And to do this means to
make Jesus live in one's mind and in one's heart ;
to establish the holiness of His life and conduct
in one's soul and even in one's body, which S. Paul
calls; " bearing about and glorifying God in our
bodies " (1 Cor. vi. 20) ; and S. Peter, " sanctifying
Jesus Christ in our hearts " (1 Pet. iii. 15).

I name it, in the second place, " The Reign of
Jesus in Christian Souls," because my purpose is,
not only to offer you a pleasant and efficacious
means of forming and making Jesus live in you,
but also of making Him reign in you absolutely.
So that, if you are careful and faithful in the use
of the pious exercises which are here offered you,
you will verify in yourself this saying of the Son
of God : " The Kingdom of God is within you "
(Luke xvii. 21) ; you will obtain what you ask
for every day in the Lord's Prayer : " Adveniat
regnum tuum "■ — ■" Thy kingdom come " ; and while
the wretched Jews called Jesus their King in
mockery, you will be able, in all verity, to call Him
your King, and to say to Him with all your heart :

Volumus, Domine Jesu, te regnare super nos "
— " We will have Thee, O Lord Jesus, to reign over
us."

If you desire to make a holy use of this book,
and to glorify God by the exercises it offers you,
read it and use it, not hastily and cursorily, but
attentively, applying both mind and heart to what
you read. When you open it, give yourself to
Jesus with renewed resolution to love Him per-

Preface xxi

fectly ; and make three acts of love to Him in the
name of him who offers it to you, and who has
received from the Heart and hand of Jesus all
there is of good in it. For my part, I pray this
same Jesus to establish in you for ever the reign
of His glory and of His love, to form Himself and
to take up His abode in you, in order to live and
reign in you perfectly — to love and glorify Himself
in you perfectly.

THE BLESSED JEAN EUDES

The parents of the Blessed Jean Eudes, God-
fearing folk of humble rank, lived in the parish
of Ri near Argentan in the diocese of Seez in
the department of the Orne. For three years
their marriage was unblessed by the birth of
children, and the pious couple, in order to obtain
this favour of the divine goodness, vowed to make
a pilgrimage to the Chapel of Notre Dame de la
Recouvrance, in the parish of Tourailles. Their
prayer being granted, the husband and wife
devoutly fulfilled their vow, and kneeling at the
foot of the ancient statue of our Lady bearing the
divine Child in her arms, they consecrated their
unborn child to our Lord and His blessed Mother.

On November 14 following, in the year of grace
1601, a son was born to them, who was baptized two
days later by the name of Jean. In the memoir
written by himself, he thus speaks of the favours
bestowed by God on him in his childhood :

" I began at the age of twelve, by a special
favour of the divine goodness, to learn to know
God. Having made my first Communion on the
Feast of Pentecost, I communicated every month
after Confession. " Gratias Deo super inenarrabili
dono ejus 1" Shortly afterwards God gave me grace
to consecrate myself to Him by a vow of chastity."

After having studied under a priest in the

country, the boy was sent in 1615, at the age of

fourteen, to pursue his studies in the college of

the Jesuit Fathers at Caen. Here he had as

xxiii

xxiv The Blessed Jean Eudes

master, for a considerable time, the Pere Robin,
a pious and fervent priest, who influenced pro-
foundly the spiritual development of his pupil,
who, even at that early age was known amongst both
masters and schoolfellows as the " devout Eudes."

During the time he spent at Caen, he renewed
his vow of chastity, and drew up a sort of deed,
in which, in language that breathed his fervent
love for the Queen of virgin souls, he chose the
Blessed Virgin for his spiritual spouse.

This engagement, so solemnly entered upon,
was put to the test shortly after his return home
to his father's house. In spite of his extreme
youth his parents had already formed plans for
his marriage with a member of one of the most
respected families in the neighbourhood. In-
formed of the project, the young man manifested
no readiness to comply with the wishes of his
parents, and met their reproaches by declaring
respectfully but firmly, that, after mature re-
flection and after taking counsel with his superiors,
he was resolved to consecrate himself to God by
entering the priesthood.

His parents reluctantly accorded their consent,
and on December 19, 1620, Jean Eudes received
the tonsure and minor orders at the hands of
Monseigneur Le Camus, Bishop of Seez.

The sight of the slackness and indifference of
the secular clergy of that period, however, rilled
the ardent soul of the young clerk with the dread,
if he joined their ranks, of following their example,
so he resolved to enter the congregation of the
Oratory recently founded by the Cardinal de
Berulle. This determination roused the oppo-
sition of his family in an even greater degree than
had his resolve to be a priest, and the young

The Blessed Jean Eudes xxv

Levite found his request met by reproaches on
the part of his father, and by tears and en-
treaties on the part of his mother. Fearing the
weakness of his own heart, which pleaded the claims
of filial affection against the calls of his vocation,
Jean Eudes resolved to flee the painful scenes
which were continually taking place, and secretly
left the house of his parents and turned his horse's
head in the direction of Paris. He had not,
however, ridden three leagues, when his steed
refused to advance farther, and the youth, seeing
in this incident an indication of God's Providence,
returned to his home, and throwing himself at his
father's feet, implored him, with tears, no longer
to oppose his vocation. Convinced, at last, that
God required of him this sacrifice, Isaac Eudes
gave his consent to his son's departure, saying :
" God is Master ; I know you are more His than
mine." Having thus obtained his father's sanc-
tion Jean Eudes knelt to receive the paternal
benediction, and then once more took the road
for Paris and entered the Oratory there on
March 25, 1623.

The earnest desire of Jean Eudes was to become
a priest after God's own heart, and truly the
Sacred Heart placed him in a school for Saints,
in leading him to enter the congregation whose
head was the Pere de Berulle, of whom Pope
Urban XIII. said : " He is not a man, but an
Angel." The novice proved himself worthy of his
saintly masters in this school of virtue and holi-
ness, and devoted himself with zealous ardour to
preparing himself for the priesthood. He was
ordained priest on December 20, 1625, and on
Christmas Day said his first Mass with a fervour
which may be divined from the saying which

xxvi The Blessed Jean Eudes

was often on his lips throughout his life : " To
say Mass worthily would require three eternities :
the first to prepare oneself, the second to celebrate
it, and the third to give thanks for a favour so great."

The trial of physical suffering was inflicted on
him during long months after his ordination.
Set aside from active work, he spent his time in
prayer and spiritual exercises, and in the study of
theological writers — thus, by the grace of God,
making this period of trial a time of formation,
which prepared him for his apostolate.

His health restored, the Pere Eudes was drawn
from his retreat by a calamity which attacked his
native place : the plague broke out in the neigh-
bourhood of Argentan, and he instantly solicited,
and obtained, from his Superior permission to
devote himself to the unfortunate victims. For
many weeks he and another devoted priest, named
Laurent, lived among the stricken population,
tending them body and soul. This is how he
describes his life durimg this time :

" We used to say Mass," he relates, " and then
I used to put the Hosts I had consecrated in a
little tin box which I hung round my neck. Then
we went now into one parish, now into another,
seeking out the sick, whom we confessed, and to
whom I then gave the Blessed Sacrament."

As soon as the plague had died out, Pere
Eudes was sent to the Oratory of Caen, where he
prepared himself by prayer and study for mission-
work.

" Behold me, Lord," was his oft-repeated
prayer at this time ; " send me, if Thou deemest
well, to work in Thy vineyard." Before entering
on this new phase of his life another opportunity
was granted to him of proving his devotion to

The Blessed Jean Eudes xxvii

victims of the mysterious judgments of God.
The plague broke out in the town of Caen, and
made fearful ravages amongst the population.
The hospitals were rilled to overflowing, and many
stricken ones, alas ! died without religious aid.
The heart of Pere Eudes was moved at the sight
of all this suffering. Again he implored per-
mission to devote himself to the service of the
unfortunate. He became the servant of all who
needed care whether of body or soul, and in order
not to spread the infection, he took up his abode
in a field opposite the Abbaye aux Dames, where
a large barrel was his only shelter, and served him,
in lieu of refectory, dormitory, and oratory. It
was there he snatched a brief period of repose
at night, leaving it each morning to resume his
work of mercy with renewed courage. He led
this life for many weeks, and when people ex-
pressed astonishment at his having escaped con-
tagion, he replied :

" I am too evil, for this lesser evil to be able
to lay hold on me."

The excessive fatigue and hardships of this
time, however, brought on a fever which en-
dangered the life of the holy priest. Many
prayers went up to the throne of the All-Merciful
on behalf of this precious life, but his own prayer
was to be allowed to depart in peace.

His work, however, was not finished ; another
half -century of toil still lay before him, for the
Sacred Heart had need of His apostle.

Yes, Pere Eudes was called to be the apostle
of the Sacred Heart. The contemplation of the
treasures of that Virgin Heart, in which all things
concerning the Son of God were kept and pondered,
had led him onward and upward to the con-

xxviii The Blessed Jean Eudes

templation of the divine Heart of the Word made
Flesh : the holy Heart of Mary had led him to
the sacred Heart of Jesus. Whether he was
favoured by our Lord with a positive revelation
on the subject of this devotion is a supposition
unconfirmed by any definite affirmation from
him ; but, however this may be, it is certain that
the mission of Pere Eudes as the apostle of
the Sacred Heart, was divinely inspired, and that
he was destined to complete the work of the
Blessed Marguerite-Marie Alacoque, and by reveal-
ing the Sacred Heart consumed with love for all
mankind, provide an antidote for the insidious
poison of the Jansenist heresy.

His missions gave him the opportunity of
spreading this devotion far and wide. To the
zeal of the missioner responded the enthusiasm
of the people and the gratitude of the clergy :
confraternities were founded in many parishes in
honour of the holy Hearts of Jesus and Mar}r,
and the Offices composed by him in their honour
received the sanction of several Bishops.

It was in 1643 that Pere Eudes founded
the Congregation of Jesus and of Mary — whose
members have since been commonly called the
" Peres Eudistes " — for the training of the clergy;
and by 1670 he was enabled, by means of members
of this congregation, to inaugurate no less than
six seminaries, whose chapels were eventually
consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the
Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Shortly after founding this Congregation, des-
tined to bring about the reform of the clergy, the
great heart of Pere Eudes, yearning pitifully
over those poor souls who sinned, not knowing,
too often, what they did, conceived the project

The Blessed Jean Eudes xxix

of founding a community for rescue work among
fallen women. Two nuns of the Visitation, of
Caen, formed the nucleus of this new Community,
which received the name of Notre Dame de la
Charite. These two Congregations were the centre
of the devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

In 1674 Pere Eudes had the joy of seeing
the labour of his life confirmed and crowned by
the approbation of the Head of the Church, who
by Bull, conferred on him the power to establish
confraternities in honour of the holy Hearts of
Jesus and Mary.

The ardent, strenuous life of the Blessed Jean
Eudes was destined to be crowned by a saintly
death. Already, in the year 1673, he had carefully
drawn up a memorandum of the Acts he desired
to accomplish at his last hour and the following
lines formed part of his last will and testament :

" In the event of my losing the use of my
reason or of my outward faculties, I hereby give
my heartfelt adhesion to all the acts of faith,
hope, love, humility, resignation, and contrition
and to all other acts which shall be made for me
whether in earth or heaven . . . and I will that
my every heart-throb, every pulsation of my
veins, every breath I draw, be so many acts of
contrition, of resignation, of praise, and of love
to my Creator and my Saviour."

On June 26, 1680, he gathered his children
round him and compelled them to accept his
resignation as Superior. A month later he was
able to give thanks to God for having permitted
him to finish his book, " Le Coeur Admirable."
The next day he went into Retreat, with the con-
viction that it was to be his preparation for death.

xxx The Blessed Jean Eudes

And so it proved : he was attacked by an illness
which caused him intolerable suffering.

During one of the attacks of pain one of those
tending him asked him if he suffered much.
" Terribly," was the answer. " But, my Father,"
pursued the questioner, " are you not willing to
suffer this pain for love of our Lord ?" " Ah !
with all my heart, with all my heart," replied
fervently the dying saint.

Feeling his illness increase, he asked for the
Holy Viaticum. As it was brought to him, he
knelt on the pavement of his cell and, held by
two Brothers, he asked pardon of our Lord for his
" innumerable sins," recited many beautiful acts,
and asked the forgiveness of his children, both
present and absent, for any grief he might have
caused them. He then received the Holy Com-
munion, and prolonged his thanksgiving with the
same fervour with which he had made his prepara-
tion. He received also the Sacrament of Extreme
Unction with equal fervour and piety, himself
making the responses to all the prayers of the
Church.

The short time remaining to him he spent in
fervent prayer, addressing from time to time,
however, a word of consolation to his sorrowing
children grouped round his bed.

" Why do you weep, my brothers ? Rejoice,
rather, that I am about to be delivered out of this
vale of sorrow."

It was thus, like a traveller arrived at the
desired haven ; like a warrior laying down the arms
he needs no longer ; like a faithful servant entering
into the joy of his Lord ; it was thus that on August
19, 1680, at the age or seventy-nine, Jean Eudes
rendered up his saintly soul to the God who gave it.

TRANSLATOR'S FOREWORD

The translation of this little book has been at once
a labour of love and of gratitude, and the trans-
lator thanks the Providence of God, who, by
means of an illness of many months' duration,
provided her with the leisure necessary for its
accomplishment. She esteems it a privilege thus
to act as interpreter both to the Apostle of Nor-
mandy, at once so tender and so austere, and to
the good and zealous priest to whom she owes all
she possesses of faith and of knowledge of things
divine.

That this voice, which speaks to them from
beyond the sea, will find an echo in the hearts of
English-speaking Catholics, she is confident ; but
her hopes and prayers are that it may penetrate
also to the hearts of some of those who, among our
separated brothers, love our Lord, and that, thus
learning from the Blessed Jean Eudes to live in
intimacy with Jesus Christ, they may allow them-
selves to be led into the one true fold.

CONTENTS

•AGE

Letters of Approbation - v

Introduction ------- ix

Dedication - - xv

Preface - xix

The Blessed Jean Eudes ----- xxiii

PART I

THE LIFE AND REIGN OF JESUS IN THE
CHRISTIAN SOUL

I. — The Nature and Foundations of the

Christian Life
II.— The Virtues of the Christian Life

I. The Nature and Foundations of the Chris-
tian Life :

i . The Christian Life should be a Continuation

of tfie Life of Jesus on Earth - - - 2

2. The First Foundation of the Christian Life :

Faith -----__ 5

3. Faith should be the Rule of all our Actions g

4. The Second Foundation of the Christian

Life : Hatred of Sin - - - - n

5. The Third Foundation of the Christian

Life : Detachment from the World and
from Worldly Things - - -. - 16

6. Of Self-abnegation - - - - - ig

7. The Perfection of Self-abnegation - - 22

8. The Fourth Foundation of the Christian

Life : Prayer - - - - - 2 5

g. Of Mental Prayer - - - -28

10. Of Vocal Prayer ----- 2g

11. The Performing of all one's Actions in a

Spirit of Prayer ----- y}
xxxiii c

xxxiv Contents

PA(.E

12. The Reading of Good Books - - - 31

13. Conversing about God - - - 31

14. Of the Qualifications necessary to Prayer - 33

II. The Virtues of the Christian Life :

1. Of the Excellence of the Christian Virtues - 39

2. Practical Rules for the Practice of the

Christian Virtues - 4°

3. The Preceding Exercise applied to the Vir-

tue of Gentleness and Humility of Heart 42

4. Of Christian Humility : its Dignity and

Necessity - - - - - "45

5. Of Christian Humility : Humility of the

Spirit ------- 46

6. Of Christian Humility : Humility of Heart 50

7. Of Humility : its Practice - - - 52

8. Of Trust and the Abandonment of Oneself

into the Hands of God 54

9. Of Christian Submission and Obedience - 60

10. Practice of Christian Submission and

Obedience ------ 64

11. The Perfection of Christian Submission and

Obedience - - - - • 67

12. The Practice of Perfect Christian Submis-

sion -------

13. Of Christian Charity - - - 71

14. The Practice of Christian Charity - - 74

15. Of Charity and of Zeal for the Salvation of

Souls ------- 78

16. Of True Christian Devotion - 79

17. The Practice of Christian Devotion - - 84

18. Of the Forming of Jesus in Us - - - 85

19. What we should do to form Jesus in Our-

selves -------87

20. Of the Good Use we should make of Spiri-

tual Consolations - - - 9°

21. Of the Holy Use we should make of Spiri-

tual Dryness and Affliction - - -92

22. That the Perfection and Consummation of

Christian Life and Holiness is Martyr-
dom ; in what Martyrdom consists - 97

23. That all Christians should be Martyrs, and

live in the Spirit of a Martvr ; what this
Spirit is ----- 100

68

Contents xxxv

PART II

THE PRACTICE OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

I. — What we should do Each Day
II.— What we should do Each Week
III.— What we should do Each Month.
IV. — What we should do Each Year

I. What we should do Each Day :

PAGE

i . Our Actions : Obligation of Consecrating

them to the Glory of Jesus - - - 114

2. Our Actions : Manner of sanctifying

Them - - - - - - -117

3. Our Actions : How Jesus becomes, by the

Habit of sanctifying our Actions, the

Centre of our Life - - - - 120

4. Our Actions : Ejaculatory Prayer - - 122

5. Our Actions : Rising - - - - 125

6. Our Actions : Prayer and Meditation - 127

7. Our Actions : Hearing Mass - - - 129

8. Our Actions : Holy Communion - - 134

9. Our Actions : Devotional Reading - - 136

10. Our Actions : The Recitation of the

Office ---.__ j^g

1 1 . Our Actions : The Recitation of the

Rosary ------ 142

12. Our Actions : Ordinary Actions - - 144

13. Our Actions : The Evening Examination

of Conscience and Going to Rest - - 146

14. Our Actions and the Holy Liberty of the

Children of God - - - - - 148

II. What we should do Each Week :

1 . Of the Three Days of the Week which we

should spend with particular Devotion - 151

2. How we may honour the Life of Jesus

Each Week - 152

3. On Devotion towards the Blessed Virgin :

How we should Honour Jesus in Mary

and Mary in Jesus - - 174

.

xxxvi Contents

PAGK

4. On Devotion towards the Blessed Virgin :

The Principal States and Mysteries of

her Life ------ 177

5. The Sacrament of Penance - - - 179

6. Indulgences - - 182

III. What we should do Each Month :

1. Exercise of Praise - - - - - 187

2. Exercise of Love - - - - 194

3. Exercise of Preparation for Death - - 215

4. Our Last Moments ----- 249

5. The Saint of the Month - - - - 254

IV. What we should do Each Year :

1. Exercise for the Beginning of the Year - 259

2. The Liturgical Year - - - - 263

3. Exercise for the Anniversary of our Birth - 287

4. Exercise for the Anniversary of our Bap-

tism ------- 290

5. The Annual Retreat - 3°3

6. Exercise for the End of the Year - - 3I5

PART III

ELEVATIONS AND PRAYERS

1. Salutation to the Hearts of Jesus and

Mary (Ave, Cor.) - - - - - 321

2. Morning Prayer ------ 323

3. Evening Prayer ------ 328

4. Prayers during Mass ----- 335

5. Prayers before and after Holy Communion,

etc. -------- 344

6. Christian Professions ----- 356

7. Acts of Love to the Sacred Heart - - 366

Dedication of this Book - - - - 37°

THE

LIFE AND REIGN OF JESUS
IN THE CHRISTIAN SOUL

FIRST PART

NATURE AND FOUNDATIONS OF THE
CHRISTIAN LIFE

" I am the Life " (S. John xiv. 6).

"I am the Vine, ye are the branches " (S. John
xv. 5).

SUMMARY.

i. The Christian life is nothing less than the con-
tinuation of the life of Jesus Christ on earth. Thus true
Christians are so many Jesus Christs.

2. As the moral life has as its principle the light of
reason, so the Christian life has as its principle the light
of faith, which enlightens us about God, about Jesus
Christ, about the Church, about ourselves, about every-
thing.

3. This life is incompatible with sin ; thus it necessi-
tates the hatred of sin, the renunciation of all that leads
to sin, of the world and of our own corrupted nature.

4. This life cannot be a continuation of the life of Jesus
if the soul does not unceasingly contemplate Jesus, appeal
to Jesus, give itself up to Jesus. Prayer is therefore an
essential condition, and, as it were, the soul of the Chris-
tian life. Thus, according to the Blessed Jean Eudes,
the four foundations of the Christian life are Faith, Hatred
:of Sin, Detachment, Prayer.

1

The Reign of Jesus

I. The Christian Life should be a Continua-
tion of the Life of Jesus on Earth.

Jesus, Son of God and Son of Man, King of men
and angels, is not only our God, our Saviour,
and our Sovereign Lord, He is also our Head, and
we are " His Members and His Body," as saith
S. Paul, " bone of His bone and flesh of His flesh "
(Eph. v. 30).

Consequently we are united to Him by the
closest union which can possibly exist — such a
union as exists between members and their head.

United to Him spiritually by Faith and by the
Grace which He has given us in Holy Baptism.

United to Him corporally by the Union of His
most Holy Body with ours in the Holy Eucharist.

It follows, therefore, necessarily, that, as members
are animated by the spirit of their head and live
the same life, so we should be animated by the
Spirit of Jesus, live His Life, walk in His Ways,
share His Feelings and Inclinations, perform all
our actions with the dispositions and intentions
with which He was animated in performing His
Actions — in a word, continue and accomplish the
Life, the Religion, and the Devotion which He
exercised on earth.

This doctrine has solid foundations :

1. The Teaching of Our Lord Jesus Christ. — It
is based on the sacred words of Him Who is Truth.
Hear Him in His Gospel : " I am the Life," and
" I am come that ye may have Life ; and ye will
not come to Me that ye may have Life" (S. John x.).
" I live and ye shall live with My Life " (S. John v.).
" In that day ye shall know that I am in My Father,
and ye in Me and I in you " (S. John xiv.). That

Nature and Foundations 3

is to say, as I am in My Father, living with the life
of My Father which He communicates to Me ;
ye also are in Me, living with My life, and I am
in you, communicating to you this life, and thus
I live in you and 3^ou shall live with Me and in
Me.

2. The Teaching of S. John. — The beloved
disciple exclaims in his turn that " God hath
given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son."
And " He who hath in him the Son of God, hath
life " ; and, on the other hand, " He who hath not
the Son of God in him hath not life " ; and " God
sent His Son into the world that we may live by
Him " ; and that we are in this world as Jesus
was in the world — that is to say, that we occupy
His place, and that we should live as He lived
(1 S. John v. 4).

3. The Teaching of S. Paul. — And what does
the great Apostle continually preach to us if not
that "We are dead" (Col. hi.), and that "Our
life is hid with Christ in God " ; that " The
eternal Father hath given us life by Jesus Christ
and in Jesus Christ "(Eph. ii.) — that is to say*
that He makes us live not only by His Son, but
even in His Son, and with the very life of His Son.
He says also, " Show forth the life of Christ in
your body >J (2 Cor. iv.) ; " Jesus Christ is your
life " (Col. hi.) ; that He is in us, that He is living
in us. " I live," he says again ; " yet not I, but
it is Christ Who liveth in Me " (Gal. ii.). The
Apostle does not speak only in his own name and
of himself, but in the name and in the person of
all Christians.

In order to establish more firmly in your mind
this fundamental truth, consider that Our Lord
Jesus Christ has a twofold Body and a twofold

4 The Reign of Jesus

suffering life : His natural Body which He took
in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and His
mystical Body — that is to say, the Holy Church,
thus named by S. Paul : Corpus Christi ; His
personal life, which animated His Body while He
was on earth and which ended with His death ;
and His mystical life, which is the continuation
of His suffering life in His Church, and in each one
of His members. And it is His Will that this life
shall endure till the consummation of time, in order
that His Father may be glorified by the acts and
sufferings of a mortal and laborious life, not only
for the space of thirty-three years, but till the end
of the world. Thus the suffering and temporal
life of Jesus in His mystical Body (that is to say,
in Christians) is not yet terminated, but is con-
tinued from day to day in every true Christian,
and will end only with the end of time.*

* A modern writer has essayed, not unsuccessfully, to
explain this mystery of the life of Jesus in us :

" Jesus is the meritorious, efficient, and final cause of
our life of grace ; but this threefold influence is in some
sort exterior ; now life is defined as being ' the interior
principle of action.' I seek, therefore, for another
influence emanating from Him which shall be interior
and present — an extension in me of the life which animates
Him. . . .

" Jesus is the possessor of all grace, and His constant,
universal, and immense occupation is to dispense it. He
is the essentially conscious Source which lovingly allows
its waters to flow over the shores of the Church, and which
sends its drop of dew to each blade of grass. He is the
August Head which communicates the supernatural life
to each soul on earth, in purgatory, and even in Heaven.
He is the Sun towards which gravitates the existence of
each.

" His soul, which has its limits on the side of infinity,
has none on the side of things created, and it is in this
soul, this human soul, that these marvels are unceasingly
happening : ' Ever living to make intercession for us.'

Nature and Foundations 5

This is why S. Paul says that he " fills up what
is lacking of the sufferings of Christ for His Body*
which is the Church " ; and what S. Paul says of
himself may be said of every true Christian when
he suffers anything in a spirit of submission and of
love of God. And further what S. Paul says of suffer-
ing may be said of all the other actions performed
by a true Christian. One may in truth say that a
true Christian, who is a member of Jesus Christ,
and who is united to Him by His Grace, continues
and accomplishes by all the actions which he
performs in the Spirit of Jesus Christ, those actions
which this same Jesus Christ performed during the
time of His mortal life on earth. So that, when

Jesus knows each one of us, all our needs, all our resources,
and at the same time He perceives in the storehouse of
His merits the grace which is needed. At the same time
— let us note this, for it is the important point — what
He has merited, what He sees, and what He desires as
man He performs as God.

" Yes, it was the divinity of Jesus which wrought the
miracle, but it was His humanity which softened to pity
for the sick, it was His hand which touched the eyes of
the blind. . . .

" It is in the same way that all grace comes to us, by
the hand of the God and by the tenderness of the Man.
This light, which enlightens my uncertainty, has passed
through the glorious intellect of Jesus ; this ardour which
beats in my breast has made His heart to throb ; and
while I welcome these feelings which emanate from Him,
He Himself is there also to experience and give to them ex-
pression with me : His prayer mingles with mine, His love
unites itself to my love, and God the Father hears but
one voice, in which our two voices are mingled.

" O Jesus, is it, then, true that we have a life in
common ? In the order of spiritual things what I think,
what I will, I receive from Thee. When I love Thy
Father, it is with my heart that Thou lovest Him " (see
Mgr. Gay, I., premier Traite " Pratique Progressive de la
Confession," T., II., chap. iv.).

6 The Reign of Jesus

a Christian meditates, he continues and completes
some meditation which Jesus Christ made on earth ;
when he works, he continues and completes some
labour of Jesus Christ ; when he converses with
his neighbours in a spirit of charity, he continues
and completes the converse of Jesus Christ with
mankind ; when he takes food or rest as becomes
a Christian, he continues and completes the sub-
jection in which Jesus Christ willed to be to these
necessities; and in like manner with all other
actions performed in a Christian way.

You see by this what is the Christian life : a
continuation and a completion of the life of Jesus.
All our actions should then be a continuation of
the actions of Jesus, and we ourselves, as it were,
so many Jesus Christs on earth.

Now, there are four things which, by often
considering and adoring the life of Jesus, we should
strive to induce in our own lives : Faith, hatred of
sin, detachment, prayer. These are the four founda-
tions of Christian life and holiness.

II. The First Foundation of Christian
Life : Faith.

The first foundation of the Christian life is
Faith. For S. Paul declares to us that "If we
would approach God and obtain access to His
Divine Majesty, the first step one must take is to
believe/' and that " without Faith it is impossible
to please God." " Faith," says this same Apostle*
" is the substance and the basis of things hoped
for" (Heb. xi. i).

It is the foundation-stone of the House and
Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

It is a celestial and Divine light, a participation

Nature and Foundations 7

in the light eternal and inaccessible, a ray of the
Face of God ; or, to speak in the language of
Scripture, Faith is, as it were, the Divine type by
which the light of the Face of God is imprinted
in our souls (Ps. iv. 7). It is a communication,
and, as it were, a spreading of the Divine light and
knowledge which were infused into the Holy Soul
of Jesus at the moment of His Incarnation.

It is the science of salvation, the science of
the Saints, the science of God, which Jesus Christ
drew from the bosom of His Father, and which He
brought to us on earth to disperse our darkness,
to enlighten our hearts, to give us the knowledge
necessary for serving and loving God perfectly*
to subject our spirits and render them submissive
to the truths which He taught, and which He still
teaches Himself and through His Church. And
thus it is that He reproduces, continues, and
completes in us the submission, the docility* and
the voluntary subjection of His Human Spirit
with regard to the light which His eternal Father
had communicated to Him, and the truths which
He had taught Him.

Such is the Faith which is given to us to take
captive our spirits, and render them submissive
to the truths which are announced to us from
God. It is a continuation and a completion of
the loving and most perfect submission which the
Human Spirit of Jesus Christ manifested with
regard to the truths which His eternal Father had
communicated to Him.

It is this light and this Divine science which
give us a perfect knowledge — so far as one can
have it in this life — of all things in God and outside
God.

God. — If we consider God with the eyes of Faith

8 The Reign of Jesus

we shall see Him in His truth, such as He is, and,
as it were, face to face. For, though Faith is
joined to darkness, and enables us to see God, not
clearly, as we shall see Him in Heaven, but darkly,
and as if through a cloud, yet it pierces these
shadows and obscurities and reveals the boundless-
ness of His perfections, making Him known to us
such as He is — that is to say, infinite in His Being
and in all His perfections. It shows us that all
that is in God and in Jesus Christ, God and Man,
is infinitely great and admirable, infinitely worthy
of being adored, glorified and loved for His own
sake. It shows us that God is true and faithful
in His promises ; that He is all goodness, all gentle-
ness, and all love towards those who seek Him
and put their trust in Him ; but that He is all
inflexibility, all terror, and all severity towards
those who forsake Him and, that it is a terrible
thing to fall into the hands of His Justice. It
gives us the firm assurance that His Divine
Providence guides and governs all that happens
in the universe with infinite wisdom and holiness,
and in the best possible way, and that this Divine
Providence merits infinite adoration and love in
all that it ordains, whether in justice or in mercy,
in Heaven, on earth, or in hell.

The Church. — If we consider the Church of God
by the light of Faith, we shall see that, having
Jesus Christ as Head and the Holy Spirit as guide,
it is impossible for her to depart from the truth
or to wander into error ; and, besides, that all the
ceremonies, customs, and functions of the Church
are of most holy institution ; that all she forbids
and orders is most lawfully forbidden and ordered ;
that all she teaches is most infallibly true ; that
we should be prepared rather to die a thousand

Nature and Foundations 9

deaths than to deviate in the smallest degree from
the truths she teaches ; and, finally, that we are
bound to revere and honour in the highest degree
everything belonging to the Church as something
holy and sacred.

Created Things. — If we consider ourselves and
all worldly things with the eye of Faith, we shall
see very clearly that of ourselves we are only
nothingness, sin, and abomination, and that all
worldly things are only vapour, vanity, and
deception.

It is in this way that we must consider every-
thing : in the truth of God, and with the eyes of
Jesus Christ — that is to say, with that Divine
light which He drew from the bosom of His Father,
with which He sees and knows all things, and which
He has communicated to us in order that we may
see and know all things as He Himself sees and
knows them.

III. Faith should be the Rule of All Our
Actions.

As we should consider all things bjr the light of
Faith, in order really to know them, so we should
also perform all our actions by the direction of
this same light, in order to perform them holily.
For, as God is guided by His Divine wisdom, the
Angels by their celestial intelligence, men who
are deprived of the light of Faith, by Reason,
worldly people by worldly maxims, the carnal by
their senses ; so Christians should be guided by
the light of Jesus Christ, their Head — that is to
say, by Faith, which is a participation in the
knowledge and in the light of Jesus Christ.

For this reason we should try by all kinds of

io The Reign of Jesus

means to acquire this Divine knowledge, and
never to undertake anything save under its holy
guidance.

To this end, at the beginning of all our actions,
especially of the more important, let us place
ourselves at the Feet of the Son of God, let us adore
Him as the Author and Perfecter of the faith, as
the true Light, which lighteth every man that
cometh into the world, and as the Father of lights.

Let us recognize that, of ourselves, we are only
darkness, that all the lights of reason, of science,
and even of human experience are very often only
darkness and deception, in which we should place
no confidence.

Let us renounce all carnal prudence and all
worldly wisdom ; let us pray . to Jesus to destroy
them in us as being His enemies, not to permit us
to be governed by their laws, their reasonings,
and their maxims, but to enlighten us with His
heavenly light, to lead us by His Divine wisdom,
to show us what is most pleasing to Him, to give
us grace and strength to cleave wholly to His
words and promises, to close our ears constantly
to the dictates and persuasions of human prudence,
and to prefer courageously the truths and maxims
of the Faith which He teaches us in His Gospel and
by His Church, to the reasonings and discoursings
of men who are guided by the maxims of the
world.

To this end it would be well to read every day
on your knees a chapter, either in Latin or in
English, of the life of Jesus — that is to say, of the
Holy Gospel, in order to learn what was the
life of your Father, and to meditate on the
actions He performed, the virtues He practised*
the words He uttered, the rules and principles

Nature and Foundations 1 1

by which He was guided, and by which He wills
that you, too; should be guided. For Christian
prudence consists in rejecting the maxims of
worldly prudence, in invoking the Spirit of Jesus
Christ, in order that He may enlighten us, and that
He may lead us in accordance with His maxims,
and that He may rule us in accordance with the
truths which He has taught us, and in accordance
with the actions He performed and the virtues He
practised. This it is to be guided by the Spirit of
Faith.

IV. The Second Foundation of Christian
Life : Hatred of Sin.

To continue on earth, as it is our duty to do,
the holy and Divine life of Jesus, we should be
animated by the feelings and inclinations of this
same Jesus, according to the teaching of His
Apostle : Hoc sentite in vobis, quod et in Christo
Jesu — " Have in you the feelings of Jesus Christ "
(Phil. ii. 5). Now Jesus Christ was actuated by
two very contrary feelings — i.e., a feeling of infinite
love for His Father and for us, and a feeling of
extreme hatred for all that is opposed to the glory
of His Father and to our salvation, that is to
say, for sin. As He loves His Father, and us with
Him, with an infinite love, so He hates sin with an
infinite hatred. He loves His Father so much,
and He loves us so much, that He has accomplished
things infinitely great, has suffered torments in-
finitely painful, and has sacrificed a life supremely
precious, for the glory of His Father and for our
salvation.

On the other hand, He holds sin in such abhor-

12 The Reign of Jesus

rence, that He came down to earth from Heaven,
humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant,!
lived thirty-three years on earth — a life full of
labour, contempt, and suffering — shed His Blood
to the last drop, and died the most shameful
and cruel of all deaths ; all this because of the
hatred He bears to sin and of the ardent desire
He has to destroy it in us.

We are therefore to reproduce in ourselves
these feelings of Jesus with regard to His Father
and with regard to sin ; we are to continue the
warfare in which He engaged with sin while He
was on earth ; for, as we are obliged to love God
with a supreme love and with all our strength, so
we are obliged to hate sin with an infinite hatred
and with all the faculties of our soul.

To bring yourself to this point, consider hence-
forth sin, not as men view it with blind and carnal
eyes, but as God views it, with eyes enlightened
by His Divine light — that is to say, with the eyes
of Faith.

By this light and with these eyes you will see
that sin is, so to say. infinitely contrary and opposed
to God and to all His Divine perfections ; that it
is the deprivation of that infinite good which is
God ; that it contains in itself a maliciousness, a
madness, a repulsiveness, and a horror as great,
one may say, as God is infinite in goodness, in
wisdom, in beauty, and in holiness. Consequently
it ought to be as much hated and as diligently
rooted out as God merits to be sought out and
loved.

You will see that sin is so horrible a thing that
it can only be washed away by the blood of a
God ; so detestable, that it can only be destroyed
by the death and the destruction of a God-Man ;

Nature and Foundations 13

so abominable, that it can only be annihilated
by the sacrifice of the only Son of God ; so accursed
in the sight of God on account of the insult
and of the dishonour it causes Him, that this
insult and this dishonour can only worthily be
atoned for by the labours, the sufferings, the
agony, the death, and the infinite merits of a
God."

You will see that sin is a cruel homicide, a fright-
ful deicide, a terrible destruction of all things.

It is a homicide, for it is the sole cause of the
death alike of body and soul of man.

It is a deicide, because sin put Jesus Christ to
death on the Cross, and because the sinner crucifies
Him afresh daily in his soul.

And it is also a destruction of nature, of grace,
and of glory. For destroying, so far as it is in its
power to do so, the author of nature, of grace, and
of glory, it consequently destroys, as far as it can,
all these things.

Further, you will see that sin is so detestable
in God's sight, that the first, the noblest, and the
dearest of His creatures, the Angel, having fallen
into one single sin — and that a sin of thought
merely and the sin of a moment — He cast him
down from the highest Heaven into the deepest
depth of hell, without giving him a single moment
of time in which to do penance, because he was
unworthy of it.

You will see, besides, that, when He finds a
soul at the hour of death in mortal sin, notwith-
standing that He is all goodness, and all love
towards His creature, that He has an intense
desire to save all mankind, and that He has shed
His Blood and given His life for us, He is, never-
theless, obliged by His justice to pronounce a

14 The Reign of Jesus

sentence of eternal damnation on this unhappy
soul.

But what is still more surprising, is that the
eternal Father, seeing His own Son, His only
beloved Son, Most Holy and Most Innocent, laden
with the sins of others, " He did not spare Him,"
says S. Paul, " but gave Him up for us to the Cross
and to death " (Rom. viii. 32) — so abominable and
so accursed is sin in His sight.

You will see, besides, that sin is so full of
maliciousness that it changes the servants of God
into slaves of the devil, the children of God into
sons of the devil, the members of Jesus Christ
into members of Satan, and even those who are
gods by grace and by participation, into demons
by resemblance and imitation, according to the
Word of Truth Himself, Who, speaking of a sinner,
called him a devil : " Unus ex vobis diabolus
est " — " And one of you is a devil " (S. John vi. 71).

Finally, you will know that sin is the greatest
of evils and the most terrible of misfortunes ; that
it is the source of all the evil and of all the un-
happiness which overspreads the earth and fills
hell ; that there is but this one evil in the world
which should be called evil ; that it is the most
fearful and terrible of all fearful and terrible
things ; that it is more terrible than death, more
frightful than the devil, and more fearful than
hell ; for all that is terrible, frightful, and fearful
in death, in the devil, and in hell comes from sin.
O sin, how detestable thou art ! Oh, did men but
know thee ! With what good reason may one
say that in thee there is something more horrible
than all that one can express or conceive, for the
soul which is stained with thy corruption can only
be cleansed and purified by the Blood of a Godi

Nature and Foundations 15

and that thou canst only be destroyed and anni-
hilated by the death and the humiliation of a
God-man !

O you Christians who read these things, all of
them founded on the word of Eternal Life, if there
remain in you one little spark of love for the God
Whom you adore and of zeal for His honour, hold
in abhorrence that which is so abhorrent to Him
and which is so opposed to His Glory. Fear and
avoid sin more than the plague, more than death,
more than all other imaginable evils. Maintain
ever in your heart the firm resolution rather to
endure a thousand deaths with all kinds of torments
than to suffer yourselves to be separated from God
by a single mortal sin.

And in order that God may preserve you from
this misfortune, be careful to avoid also, so far as
is possible, all venial sin. For you should re-
member that Our Lord shed His Blood and gave
His life to take away venial sin as well as mortal ;
and that he who lightly regards venial sin will
soon fall into mortal sin. If you do not feel in
yourselves this determination, pray Our Lord to
establish it in your soul, and take no rest till you
feel you have attained it. For, so long as you
have not this will to die and to endure all sorts of
contempt and of torments rather than to commit
a single sin, know that you are not truly Christian.
And if, unfortunately, you should happen to fall
into sin, try to raise yourself up again at once by
means of contrition and confession, and to renew
your former resolution.

1 6 The Reign of Jesus

V. The Third Foundation of Christian Life :
Detachment from the World and from
Worldly Things.

It is not sufficient for a Christian to be free from
vice and to have a horror of all kind of sin ; he should
further strive carefully and earnestly to attain to
a perfect detachment from the world and worldly
things.

I understand by the world the corrupt and ill-
regulated life which is led in the world, the per-
nicious spirit which dominates it, the sinful feelings
and inclinations which animate it, the wicked laws
and principles by which it is governed.

I understand by worldly things all that the
world esteems, loves, and seeks after — i.e., honours
and the praise of man, the empty pleasures and
satisfactions, riches and comfort, friendships and
affections, which have their root in the flesh, in
self-love and in self-interest.

Cast your eyes on the life of Our Lord Jesus
Christ, and you will find that He lived on earth
in a state of the most perfect detachment and
voluntary destitution. Read His Gospel, listen
to His words, and you will learn that " He Who
doth not forsake all things, cannot be My disciple "
(S. Luke xv. 33). This is why, if you wish to be
truly Christian and the disciple of Jesus Christ,
and if you desire to continue and to reproduce in
yourself His holy life, you must strive to main-
tain yourself in this state of absolute and entire
detachment from the world and the things of the
world.

With this object, you should often reflect that
the world has always been, and will always be, in

Nature and Foundations 17

opposition to Jesus, that it has always persecuted
and crucified Him, and that it will persecute and
crucify Him to the end of time. The feelings and
inclinations, the laws and principles, the life and
the mind of the world are so opposed to the feelings
and inclinations, to the laws and principles, to the
life and mind of Jesus, that it is impossible that
they should coexist. For all the feelings and
inclinations of Jesus conduce only to the glory of
His Father and to our sanctification ; but the
feelings and inclinations of the world lead only to
sin and to perdition.

The laws and principles of Jesus are most sweet,
most holy, and reasonable ; the laws and principles
of the world are the laws and principles of hell ; they
are wholly diabolical, tyrannical, and intolerable.

The life of Jesus is a life, holy, and adorned with
all kinds of virtues ; the life of the world is a life of
depravity, full of debauchery and all kinds of vice.

The spirit of Jesus is a spirit of light, of truth,
of godliness, of love, of trust, of zeal, and rever-
ence for God and the things of God ; the spirit of
the world is a spirit of error, of unbelief, of dark-
ness, of blindness, of mistrust, of murmuring, of
ungodliness, of irreverence, and of hardness for
God and the things of God.

The spirit of Jesus is a spirit of humility, of
modesty, of mistrust of oneself, of mortification,
and of self-sacrifice, of constancy and of firmness ;
on the other hand, the spirit of the world is a spirit
of pride, of presumption, of undue love of self,
of levity, and of inconstancy.

The spirit of Jesus is a spirit of mercy, of charity,
of patience, of gentleness, and of concord ; the
spirit of the world is a spirit of revenge, of envy,
of impatience, of anger, and of division.

1 8 The Reign of Jesus

Lastly, the spirit of Jesus is the Spirit of God —
a spirit holy and Divine ; a spirit of all kinds of
grace, of virtue, and of blessing ; a spirit of peace
and of calm ; a spirit which seeks only the interests
of God and His glory. On the other hand, the
spirit of the world is the spirit of Satan ; for Satan,
being the prince and leader of the world, it follows
necessarily that the world is animated and ruled
by his spirit : a spirit earthly, carnal, animal ; a
spirit of all kinds of sin and malediction ; a spirit
of confusion and restlessness, of storm and tempest
— spiritus procellarum (Ps. x. 7) ; a spirit which
seeks only its own convenience, satisfaction, and
interest. Judge, now, if the spirit and life of the
world be compatible with the Christian spirit and
life which is no other than the spirit and life of
Jesus Christ.

It is for this reason that, if you aspire to be
truly Christian — that is to say, if you desire to
belong perfectly to Jesus Christ, to live His life,
to be animated by His spirit, and to be guided
by His principles — you must of necessity make it
your business to renounce the world entirely,
and to bid it an eternal farewell. I do not mean
that it is necessary that you should leave the
world to shut yourself up between four walls,
unless God calls upon you to do so ; but that you
should endeavour to live in the world as not of
it — that is to say, that you should make a public,
generous, and constant profession not to live the
life of the world, and not to be guided by its spirit
and by its laws ; that you should not be ashamed
of your Christian calling, but that you should glory
in belonging to Jesus Christ, and in preferring His
holy maxims to those of the world ; that you should,
in fact, display as much courage in despising the

Nature and Foundations 19

laws and ideas of the world as its own partisans
show in despising the Christian laws and maxims.
This is what I call separating oneself from the
world, renouncing the world, and living in the world
as not of it.

VI. Of Self-Abnegation.

It is much to have renounced the world in the
way we have just described ; but this is not yet
sufficient if we would attain to a perfect detach-
ment, which is one of the first foundations of the
Christian life. For Our Lord proclaims loudly
that He who would come after Me, let him renounce
himself and follow Me (S. Matt. xvi. 24). There-
fore, if we would be of the followers of Jesus and
belong to Him, we must renounce ourselves — that
is to say, our mind, our senses, our will, desires*
and inclinations, and our self-love, which leads
us to dislike and shrink from all which may grieve
or mortify the spirit or the flesh, and to love and
seek after all which may please and content them.

Two reasons oblige us to this abnegation of self :

1. Because all in us is so unruly and so depraved,
in consequence of the corruption of sin, that there
is nothing in us which is not opposed to God,
which is not an obstacle to His plans, and which
is not in opposition to the love and the honour we
owe Him. This is why, if we desire to belong to
God, it is necessary to renounce oneself, to forget
oneself, to hate oneself, to persecute oneself, to
lose oneself, to annihilate oneself.

2. Because Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is our
Head and our Model, and in Whom was nothing
which was not entirely holy and Divine, lived,
nevertheless, in such a continual state of renuncia-

20 The Reign of Jesus

tion of Himself and of annihilation of His human
spirit, of His own will and of His self-love, that
He never did a single action by the guidance of
His own senses and human spirit, but always
acted under the guidance of His Father's Spirit ;
because He never did His own will, but always
His Father's, and because He always bore Himself
as a person Who has no love, but rather hatred, for
Himself.

Wherefore, if we are truly His members, we
shall share His feelings and dispositions, and make
a firm resolution to live henceforth in a state of
entire abnegation, forgetfulness, and hatred of self.

To this end : i. Be careful often to adore Jesus
in this abnegation of Himself, and give yourself to
Him, imploring Him to detach you wholly from
yourself, from your own spirit, from your own
will, and from your self-love, in order to unite
you perfectly to Himself, and to lead you in all
things in accordance with His spirit, with His will,
and with His pure love.

2. At the beginning of your actions raise your
heart to Him in this way : " O Jesus, I renounce,
with all my strength, myself, my own spirit, my
own will, and my pride, and I give myself to Thee,
to Thy Holy Spirit, and to Thy Divine love ; do
Thou draw me out of myself and direct me, in this
action, according to Thy holy WTill."

3 . In times of strife and variance in those differ-
ences of opinion which arise so frequently, although
it may seem to you that you have right and truth
on your side, be glad, nevertheless — provided that
the honour of God be not at stake — that you have
the opportunity of renouncing your own ideas
and of yielding to the opinion of others.

4. When you feel a desire or an inclination for

Nature and Foundations 21

anything, lay it down at once at the feet of Jesus,
protest to Him that your will is to have no desire or
inclination other than His.

5. As soon as you feel arise in your heart, a
tenderness or affection for anything, turn at once
your heart and your affections to Jesus, saying :
" O my beloved Jesus, I give to Thee all my heart
and all my affections. O sole object of my love,
grant me never to love anything save in Thee and
for Thee/'

6. When you are praised, refer it to Him Who
alone is worthy of all honour, in this way : " O
my Glory : I desire no glory but Thine ; for unto
Thee alone belong all honour, praise, and glory, and
unto me all abjection, contempt, and humiliation.' '

7. When there come to you occasions of mortifi-
cation for body or mind, or opportunities of de-
priving yourself of some satisfaction (and such
opportunities occur hourly), take advantage of
them gladly for love of Our Lord, and give Him
thanks for allowing you the opportunity of mortify-
ing your self-love, and of honouring the mortifica-
tions and privations which He endured on earth.

8. When you experience some joy or consola-
tion, offer them to Him Who is the source of all
consolation, and raise your heart to Him thus :
" O Jesus, 1 desire none other joy than Thine.
Ah, Lord, it is joy enough for me to know that
Thou art God and that Thou art my God. Ah,
Jesus, be for ever Jesus — that is to say, full of
glory, of greatness and of delight, and I shall be
ever content. O my Jesus, never permit me to
take delight save in Thee alone ; enable me to say
with the holy Queen Esther : " Thou knowest,
O Lord God, that I have delighted in Thee alone."
(Esth.xiv. 18).

22 The Reign of Jesus

VII. The Perfection of Self-Abnegation.

The perfection of Christian abnegation consists
not only in being detached from the world and
from oneself, but it obliges us also, in a certain
sense, to detach ourselves from God Himself.

Do you not know that Our Lord, while He was
on earth, assured His Apostles that it was ex-
pedient that He should separate Himself from
them in order to return to His Father, and to send
them His Holy Spirit ? Why so ? if not because
they were attached to the satisfaction of the senses
which they enjoyed in the presence of His sacred
Humanity. And this was a hindrance to the
coming into them of His Holy Spirit — so necessary
is it to be detached from all things — however holy
and Divine they may be, if one would be animated
by the spirit of Jesus, which is the spirit of Chris-
tianity.

This is why I say that we must, in a certain sense,
be detached from God Himself — that is to say,
from the sweetness and consolation which ordin-
arily accompany the grace and love of God ; from
the pious plans which we make for the glory of
God ; from the desire we may feel to attain to a
higher perfection and a deeper love of God ; and
even from the desire we may have to be freed from
the prison-house of our body in order to see Him,
to be united to Him, to love Him purely and
unceasingly.

i. When God allows us to feel, during our re-
ligious exercises, the sweetness of His goodness,
we must be careful not to cling to it and to rely
on it. We ought at once to humble ourselves,
esteeming ourselves unworthy of any consolation,

Nature and Foundations 23

resign these favours to Him Who bestowed them,
and hold ourselves ready to be deprived of them,
protesting that we desire to serve and love Him,
not for the consolations He bestows either in this
world or in the next on those who love and serve
Him, but for His love's sake alone.

2. When we have formed some pious plan, or
undertaken some holy action, for the glory of God,
we ought, doubtless, to do our utmost to insure
its success. We should not, however, cling to it
in such a way that, if we are obliged to interrupt
or abandon the plan or the action, we lose our
peace of mind ; but we should be satisfied with
the Divine Will or permission which rules all things,
and which is always equally loveworthy.

3. The same with our advance in virtue ; for
while we labour with all our strength to conquer
our passions and to perfect ourselves in the
practice of all the virtues, we should do so without
undue eagerness. If we are sensible of not having
as much virtue and love of God as we could wish,
let us, nevertheless, be calm and without un-
easiness, humbling ourselves on account of the
obstacles which we put in the way of God's grace ;
loving our own vileness, contenting ourselves with
what it pleases God to give us, persevering ever
in the desire to advance in holiness, and putting
our whole trust in the goodness of Our Lord, Who
will surely accord us the grace necessary to serve
Him with the degree of perfection which He
requires of us.

4. Lastly, if we would live in the continual
expectation and desire of the happy hour, the
happy moment which shall separate us wholly
from the earth, from sin, and from imperfection,
which shall unite us perfectly to God and to His

24 The Reign of Jesus

pure love ; if we would labour earnestly for the
accomplishment of God's work in us so that He
may call us the sooner to Him ; even then this
desire must be free from uneasiness and undue
eagerness. So that, if it be Our Lord's good
pleasure that we should be for some years longer
deprived of His sweet presence, we may remain
content with His most loveworthy Will, even if
it should please Him to inflict on us this privation
until the day of Judgment.

This is what I call being detached from God ;
in this consists the perfect detachment from the
world, from oneself, and from all things which all
Christians should possess. Oh, how sweet it is
thus to be free and detached from all things !

You will perhaps think that it is very difficult
to attain to this. But everything would be easy
to us if we gave ourselves wholly and without
reserve to the Son of God, and if we put our
trust, not in our own strength or in our good
resolutions, but in the greatness of His goodness
and the might of His power and of His love ;
for, where is Divine love, all is smoothness and har-
mony. We must, it is true, do ourselves violence,
pass through sorrow, suffering, darkness, mortifica-
tion ; nevertheless, in the path of Divine love there
is more of honey than of gall, more of sweetness
than of bitterness.

O my Saviour, what content Thou findest, what
delight Thou takest, what marvels dost Thou
work in the soul which walks valiantly in this path
— forsaking all, detaching herself from all things —
even, in some sort, from Thee, so as to give herself
to Thee more perfectly. How closely dost Thou
unite her to Thee ! How entirely dost Thou take
possession of her ! How Thou dost plunge her

Nature and Foundations 25

in the abyss of Thy holy love ! How admirably
dost Thou transform her into Thyself, clothing
her with Thy virtues, with Thy spirit, and with
Thy love !

But what joy, what sweetness is the lot of the
soul who can say with truth : My God, behold me
free and detached from all things ! What can
hinder me now from loving Thee perfectly ? Lo !
I cling no longer to any earthly thing ! Draw me
after Thee, O my Jesus ! Trahe me post te,
curremus in odorem unguentorum tuorum
(Cant. i. 3). Ah, what consolation for a soul to
be able to say with the Spouse of Holy Scripture :
" My Beloved is mine and I am His " (Cant. ii. 16) ;
and with Jesus : " Omnia mea tua sunt, et tua
mea sunt " — " All that is mine is Thine, O my
Saviour, and all that is Thine is mine " (S. John
xvii. 10).

Let us have an earnest desire for this holy detach-
ment ; let us give ourselves entirely and without
reserve to Jesus, and let us implore Him to use
the strength of His arm to break our bonds, to
detach us wholly from the world, from ourselves,
and from all things, so that He may accomplish
in us, without let or hindrance, all that He desires,
for His glory, to accomplish.

VIII. The Fourth Foundation of Christian
Life: Prayer.

The holy exercise of prayer should be placed
amongst the principal foundations of the Christian
life, because the entire life of Jesus Christ was one
continual prayer. We should, therefore, con-
tinue and reproduce His life of prayer in our life
as being the most important and most necessary

26 The Reign of Jesus

practice of all. The earth which bears us, the air
which we breathe, the bread which nourishes us,
the heart which beats in our breast, are not as
necessary to man for his bodily life as prayer is
to the Christian for his spiritual life. The reason
of this is :

1. That the Christian life — which the Son of God
calls eternal life — consists in knowing and in
loving God. Now it is by prayer that this Divine
knowledge is acquired.

2. That, of ourselves, we are nothing, we can
do nothing, we possess nothing but our poverty
and our nothingness. This is why we have a
very great need of having recourse to God hourly,
by means of prayer, to ask and obtain from Him
all that is lacking to us.

Now prayer is a respectful and loving elevation
of our mind and of our heart to God. It is a sweet
intercourse and a Divine conversation of the
Christian soul with her God. By means of this
intercourse she considers and contemplates God
in His Divine perfections, in His mysteries, and
in His works ; she adores Him, blesses Him, loves
Him, glorifies Him, gives herself to Him, humbles
herself before Him at the sight of her sins and
ingratitude, and begs for mercy ; she learns to
become like Him by imitating His Divine virtues
and perfections ; and lastly, she asks Him for all
she needs in order to serve and love Him.

Prayer is a participation in the life of the
Angels and of the Saints, in the life of Jesus Christ,
and of His most holy Mother, in the life of God Him-
self, and of the three Divine Persons. For the life of
the Angels, of the Saints, of Jesus Christ, and of
His most holy Mother is nothing else than a
continual exercise of prayer and contemplation,

Nature and Foundations 27

they being ceaselessly employed in contemplating,
in glorifying, and in loving God, and in asking,
on our behalf, for the things we need. And
the life of the three Divine Persons is perpetually
passed in mutually contemplating, glorifying, and
loving each other, which is the first and chief
part of the practice of prayer.

Prayer is perfect felicity, supreme happiness,
and a true paradise on earth. For it is by means
of this Divine exercise that the Christian soul is
united to her God, Who is her Centre, her End,
and her supreme Good. It is by prayer that she
possesses Him, and is possessed by Him. It is
by means of prayer that she renders Him what
is due to Him — her homage, her adoration, and
her love, and by prayer that she receives from
Him light, blessing, and a thousand proofs of the
excessive love He bears her. It is by prayer that
God takes His delight in us, according to His
saying : " My delight is to be with the children
of Men." It is by prayer that He teaches us by
experience that true delight and perfect content
are to be found in God, and that a hundred — nay,
a thousand — years passed amidst the deceitful
pleasures of the world, are not worth one moment
of the true sweetness of which those souls taste
who find their content in conversing with Him by
means of prayer.

Lastly, prayer is the most worthy, the most
noble, the highest, the greatest, and the most
important act and occupation in which it
is possible for you to pass your time, for it is
the act and continual occupation of the Angels,
of the Saints, of the Blessed Virgin, and of Jesus
Christ as Man throughout eternity ; and also
because it is destined to be for ever our perpetual

28 The Reign of Jesus

occupation in Heaven. It is even the true and
fitting occupation of a man and of a Christian,
because man was created for God alone, to be
with Him ; and because the Christian is on the
earth for the sole purpose of continuing to do what
Jesus Christ Himself did.

As therefore our dear Jesus deigns to take
delight in conversing with us by means of prayer,
I entreat you in the name of God do not deprive
Him of this joy. Prove for yourself how true is
this saying of the Holy Spirit : " There is neither
bitterness in His conversation nor fatigue in His
company, with Him one finds nothing but joy
and gladness " (Wisdom viii. 16).

Look upon prayer as the first, the chief, the
most necessary, the most important of all your
duties. Free yourself as much as possible from
all others, which are less necessary, in order to
give to this one as much time as you can, above
all, in the morning, in the evening, and a little
before noon.

IX. Of Mental Prayer.

There are several kinds of prayer. The first is
what is called mental prayer, because the soul
holds interior converse with God, taking as the
subject of her converse some of His divine per-
fections, some mystery, some virtue or saying of
the Son of God or else one of His actions — either
one of those which He performed while on earth,
or one of those which He still performs in the order
of glory, of grace, or of nature, in His Mother, in
His Saints, in His Church, in the world.

First of all, one applies one's understanding to
the consideration, with a sustained and tranquil

Nature and Foundations 29

attention, of the truths contained in this subject?
and which are calculated to make us love God
and detest our sins. Next one stimulates one's
heart and one's will in order to make them produce
acts of adoration, of praise, of love, of humility,
of contrition, of oblation, and of resolution to flee
evil, and to do good, according as the Spirit of God
inspires us.

This kind of prayer is holy, useful, and full of
blessing in a degree impossible to describe. For
this reason, if God draws you to it and blesses it
to you, you should give Him thanks as for a signal
favour. If He has not yet granted you this grace,
pray that He may do so. On your side, do all
you can to deserve it, and to correspond to it by
practising this holy action, which God will teach
you better than all the books and all the doctrines
of theology, if you throw yourself at His feet with
humility, with confidence, and with singleness of
heart.

X. Of Vocal Prayer.

The second kind of prayer is that which is called
vocal. Vocal prayer is the utterance of the lips
addressed to God, whether in saying the Divine
Office, the Rosary, or some other spoken prayer.
This kind of prayer is hardly less profitable than
mental prayer, provided that the heart unites itself
to the tongue in speaking to God, for then your
prayer will be, at the same time, mental and vocal.
If, on the contrary, you get into the habit of
reciting vocal prayers by routine and without
attention, you will come out from God's presence
more undevout, more sluggish, more cold, and
more unloving than you were before. For this
reason, in addition to the obligatory prayers, I

30 The Reign of Jesus

advise you rather to say few, and to acquire the
holy habit of saying them well, attentively, with
your mind continually fixed on God, and both
mind and heart busy with some devout thought
and aspiration while your tongue is pronouncing
the prayers. Remember that you are to continue
the prayer which Jesus Christ prayed while He
was on earth. To this end give yourself to Him,
unite yourself to the humility, to the purity and
holiness, to the perfect attention with which He
prayed, and implore Him to imprint in you the
holy dispositions and the Divine intentions of
His prayer.

You may offer your prayer to God, in union with
all the devout prayers and godly meditations
which have been, and are, made continually in
Heaven and on earth, by the Blessed Virgin, by
all the Saints on earth and in Heaven, uniting
yourself to the love, devotion, and attention with
which they perform this Divine act.

XL The Performing all One's Actions in a
Spirit of Prayer.

The third kind of prayer is to perform chris-
tianly and holily all your actions, even the smallest,
offering them to Our Lord before beginning them,
and raising your heart to Him from time to time
while they last. For thus to perform one's
actions, is to perform them in a spirit of prayer, is
to be always in the continual practice of prayer
according to the command of Our Lord, Who wills
that we should pray without ceasing. This is also
a very excellent and easy manner of being always
in the presence of God.

Nature and Foundations 31

XII. The Reading of Good Books.

The fourth kind of prayer is the reading of good
books, which should be done, not hastily and pre-
cipitately, but leisurely and with a mind attentive
to what you read, stopping to consider, to ru-
minate, to weigh, and to relish, the truths which
appeal to you most, in order to imprint them on
your mind, and to permit them to prompt diverse
acts and aspirations, in the manner which we have
described in speaking of mental prayer. This
practice is of very great importance, and produces
in the soul the same results as mental prayer.
This is why one of the things that I recommend
you most strongly is never to pass a single day
without reading some holy book for half an hour.

The most fitting books for this purpose are the
New Testament, the Imitation of Jesus Christ, and
the Lives of the Saints.

Before beginning your reading, be careful to
offer your mind and your heart to Our Lord, and
implore Him to give you grace to gather from it
the fruit He requires from you, and to effect in your
soul by its means the result He desires, to His
honour and glory.

XIII. Conversing about God.

It is also a most useful and holy thing, and one
which usually has the result of greatly inflaming
the heart with divine love, to talk and confer
from time to time familiarly one with another
about God and things Divine. Christians should
thus pass a part of their time : the things of God
should be the subject of their ordinary discourse ;

32 The Reign of Jesus

it is in this that they should find their re-
creation and their enjoyment.

It is to this practice that the Prince of the
Apostles exhorts us when he says : " If a man speak,
let his words be as the words of God " (i Pet.
iv. n).

For, as we are children of God, we should take
pleasure in speaking the language of our Father,
which is a language all holy, heavenly, and
Divine ; and as we are created for Heaven, we
should begin even on earth to speak the language
of Heaven. Oh, how sweet and holy is this
language ! Oh, how sweet it is to a soul who loves
her God above all things, to speak of what she loves
best in all the world, and to hear it spoken of ! Oh,
how pleasing are these conversations to Him Who
has said that " where two or three are gathered
together in His Name, there will He be in the midst
of them I" Oh how different are these discoursings
to the ordinary discoursings of the world ! Oh,
how devoutly employed is the time thus passed,
provided that one is in a fitting frame of mind !

To this end we should follow the example and
the rule given us by S. Paul in these words : " Sicut
ex Deo, coram Deo, in Christo loquimur " — " We
speak as from God, in the presence of God, in Jesus
Christ " (2 Cor. ii. 17) — words which indicate three
conditions which we should observe in order to
speak of God holily".

The first is that we should speak as from God —
that is to say, that we should borrow from God
the things and the words we have to say, offering
ourselves to the Son of God at the beginning of our
spiritual conversations, in order that He may put
thoughts in our mind, and, on our lips, the words
we are to say, that thus we may be able to say to

Nature and Foundations 33

Him what He Himself said to His Father : " I
have given to them the words which Thou hast
given to Me " (S. John xvii. 8).

The second condition is that we should speak
in the presence of God — that is to say, with our
attention and our mind turned towards God, Who
is everywhere present ; and in the spirit of prayer
and recollection, offering ourselves to God, so
that He may cause to fructify in us the things
which we say or hear said, and that we may profit
by them according to His Will.

The third condition is that we should speak in
Jesus Christ — that is to say, with the intentions
and dispositions of Jesus Christ, and as Jesus
Christ spoke when He was on earth, or as He would
speak if He were in our place. To this end we
should offer ourselves to Him, and unite ourselves
to His intentions, which had no other aim than the
glory of His Father ; unite ourselves, also, to His
dispositions, which were dispositions of humility
on his own behalf, of gentleness and charity to-
wards others, of love and 2eal towards His Father.
In this way our talk and our discoursings will
be most pleasing to Him : He will be in the midst
of us, He will delight in being with us, and the
time employed in these devout conversations will
be a time of prayer.

XIV. Of the Qualifications necessary to
Prayer

The Apostle S. Paul teaches us that, in order to
perform all our actions holily, we must perform
them in the Name of Jesus Christ ; and this same
Jesus Christ assures us that all we ask of the Father
in His Name shall be granted to us. This is why,

3

34 The Reign of Jesus

in order to pray holily and to obtain from God what
we ask Him for, we must pray in the Name of Jesus
Christ.

But what is it to pray in the Name of Jesus
Christ ? It is to continue the prayer Jesus Christ
prayed on earth. For all Christians, being mem-
bers of Jesus Christ and of His Body, as saith
S. Paul, they occupy His place on earth ; they repre-
sent His Person, and consequently they should
perform all their actions in His Name — that is to
say, in His spirit, with His dispositions and inten-
tions, as He performed them when He was on
earth, and as He would perform them if He were
in their place. It is thus that an ambassador
who occupies the place and represents the person
of the King has to act and speak in his name —
that is to say, in his spirit, with his dispositions
and intentions, and as the King would act and
speak himself if he were present. It is for this
reason that I say that to pray in the Name of
Jesus Christ is to continue the prayer of Jesus
Christ — that is to say, to pray in the spirit of Jesus
Christ, with His dispositions and intentions, as
He prayed Himself when on earth, and as He would
pray if He were in our place. And it is thus that
Christians should pray.

When, therefore, you betake yourself to prayer,
bethink you that you are about to continue the
prayer of Jesus Christ and that you should there-
fore pray as He would pray if He were in your
place — that is to say, with the dispositions with
which He prayed on earth and with which He
still prays in Heaven and on our altars, where He
is ever engaged in prayer to His Father. To this
end unite yourself to the love, to the humility,
to the purity and holiness, to the attention, and to

Nature and Foundations 35

the devout dispositions and intentions with which
He prayed.

Now, amongst these dispositions there are four
in particular with which He prayed, and with
which we should pray, if we desire to glorify God
by our prayers and obtain from Him what we ask.

1. Humility.

The first disposition necessary for prayer is
that we must present ourselves before God with
a profound humility, avowing ourselves most un-
worthy to appear before His Face, to look upon
Him or even to be looked at or listened to by
Him ; and that of ourselves we cannot have a
single good thought or do a single act pleasing to
Him. For this reason we must humble ourselves
at His Feet, offer ourselves to Our Lord Jesus
Christ, and pray Him to annihilate us and put
Himself in our place, so that it may be He Who
prays in us — He alone being worthy to appear
before His Father's Face, to glorify and to love
Him, to obtain from Him what He asks for. Then
we should confidently ask the Eternal Father for
all we need in the Name of His Son, by the merits
of His Son, and for His Son Who is in us.

2. Confidence.

The second disposition with which we must pray
is a respectful and loving confidence, believing
firmly that all we ask for — which is for the glory
of God and for our salvation — we shall assuredly
obtain, and often in a better way than we expect,
provided that we ask, not trusting in our own
merits or in the virtue of our prayer, but in the
merits of Jesus Christ, confiding in His great

36 The Reign of Jesus

goodness and in the truth of these promises :
Ask, and it shall be given you ; all things that
ye ask in My Name they shall be given you ";
and " When ye ask anything of God, believe and
have confidence that ye will receive it, and it shall
be granted to you " (S. Mark xi. 24). For it is
true that if God treated us according to our deserts,
He would drive us out from before His Face, and
annihilate us when we present ourselves before
Him. For this reason, when He accords us some
favour, we should not think that it is to us, nor for
the sake of our prayers, that He accords it ; but
it is to His Son Jesus that He gives all that He
gives, and for the sake of His prayers and merits.

3. Purity of Intention.

The third disposition with which we must pray
is purity of intention, protesting to Our Lord, before
beginning, that we renounce all spirit of curiosity,
all self-love, and that we wish to do this act, not
for our own satisfaction and consolation, but for
His sole honour and content, as He delights in
dealing and conversing with us, and that all we
ask Him for, we desire to ask for, solely to this
same end.

4. Perseverance.

The fourth disposition necessary to perfect
prayer is perseverance.

If you would glorify God by your prayer and
obtain of His goodness what you ask, you must
persevere faithfully in this Divine practice. For
there are many things which we ask of God which
He does not give us the first, nor the second, nor
the third time we ask, because He wishes that we
should ask Him for them many times. His design

Nature and Foundations 37

is to keep us in a state of humility and of self-
contempt, and to induce us to hold His favours
in high esteem. He delights in leaving us for a
long time in a position which obliges us to have
recourse to Him again and again, so that we may
be often with Him and He with us, so great is
His love for us and so true is it that His delight
is to be with us.

Lastly, as the crown and completion of all these
holy dispositions, when you begin your prayer,
offer your mind and your heart to Jesus and to His
Divine Spirit, imploring Him to put into your
mind such thoughts and into your heart such feel-
ings and affections as seems good to Him ; give
yourself up to His holy guidance, in order that He
may direct you as He pleases in this Divine exer-
cise, trusting in His great goodness, and with the
assurance that He will lead you in the way that
is best for you, that He will give you all you ask —
not, perhaps, in the way that you wish, but in a
way much better for you.

II

.-.-

^V^ CHRISTIAN VIRTUES

" Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ " (Rom. xiii. 14).

" Put ye on, therefore, as the elect of God, O ye holy
and beloved, tenderness, mercy, kindness, humility
modesty, patience . . . but above all put ye on charity,
which is the bond of perfection " (Col. hi. 12-14).

SUMMARY.

If the Christian life is the continuation of the life of
Jesus, it should necessarily reproduce His virtues. Thus
the Christian who desires that Jesus should reign in his
heart should practise —

1. Humility ; humility of mind, humility of heart.

2. Trust in God. Humility is the mother of trust in
God, for the realization of our poverty and of our power-
lessness impels us to cast ourselves at the feet of our
God.

3. Submission to the holy Will of God. The meat of
Jesus was to do this holy Will ; it should also be ours.

4. Charity towards our neighbour. This is the virtue
dear to the Heart of Jesus, and is the mark of the true
Christian.

5. Devotion to God. The love which inflamed the
Heart of Jesus for His Heavenly Father caused Him to
devote Himself wholly to His service ; it should be so
with each one of us.

6. The formation of Jesus in ourselves. These virtues,
practised carefully and with constancy, in times of dry-
ness as in times of consolation, bring about in us the for-
mation of Jesus, Who becomes our one object, our one
love, the centre of our life, our All.

7. Martyrdom would be for us the supreme grace, the
summit of perfection. Let us at least live in the spirit
of the martyr, ever ready to shed our blood for Jesus
Christ.

38

Christian Virtues 39

I. Of the Excellence of the Christian
Virtues.

Having laid in your soul the principal founda-
tions of the Christian life, it is now necessary, if
you desire that Jesus should live and reign in you,
to train yourself carefully in the practice of His
virtues. As we have to continue the life of holiness
which Jesus led on earth, we should, consequently,
practise the virtues of which He is the Model, and
practise them in accordance with His Spirit and
under the influence of His grace — that is to say,
like Jesus Christ, by Jesus Christ, and for Jesus
Christ.

1. Like Jesus Christ — that is to say, that we
must consider the virtue, not in itself only, but in
its principle and in its source — i.e., in Jesus
Christ, Who is the source of all grace, Who con-
tains in Himself, in a supreme degree, all the
virtues, and in Whom all the virtues have an
infinite excellence. Thus all which is in Jesus
being holy, divine, and adorable, the virtues are
deified and sanctified in Him, and are, consequently,
worthy of infinite honour and adoration. This
consideration will be much more powerful in im-
pelling us to esteem them, to love them, and to
practise them, than if we considered them only
from the point of view of their inherent excellence
and of the esteem in which they are held by
the human intelligence.

2. By Jesus Christ — that is to say, by His grace.
Those who are guided by the spirit of Christianity
in the practice of virtue know very well that they
cannot perform the least act of virtue of their
own strength. On the contrary, if God withdrew

40 The Reign of Jesus

from them His grace, they would at once fall into
an abyss of vice. They also well know that virtue,
being a free gift of the mercy of God, it must be
asked for trustingly and perseveringly. For this
reason they ask God earnestly, continually, and
untiringly for the virtues they need.

They bring to bear, however, on their side all
the care, all the vigilance, and all the diligence
possible in their efforts to practise them. Never-
theless, they take great care neither to trust in, or
to depend upon, these efforts nor upon the practice
of the virtues, nor upon their own desires and
resolutions, nor upon the prayers they address to
God. But they tarry for the mercy of God, feeling
no uneasiness at not seeing in themselves the
virtues they wish for.

3. For Jesus Christ — that is to say, solely for
His glory. They desire the virtue and strive to
produce frequent acts, both interior and exterior,
of love of God, of love to their neighbour, of
patience, of obedience, of humility, of mortifica-
tion, and of the other Christian virtues, not for
themselves, nor for their own interest or satis-
faction, but for the pleasure and satisfaction of
God, in order that they may resemble Jesus Christ,
their Head, that they may glorify Him, and con-
tinue the practice of the virtues which He prac-
tised on earth. In this consists, properly speaking,
Christian virtue.

II. Practical Rules for the Practice of the
Christian Virtues.

In accordance with what precedes, these are
the rules you should follow when you wish to per-
fect yourself in some virtue :

Christian Virtues 41

1. Adore the virtue in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
and consider how eminent He was in this virtue,
and with what perfection He practised it through-
out His life.

2. Humble yourself before Him at seeing your-
self so far from this perfection ; ask His forgiveness
for all the offences you have ever committed against
this virtue, avowing that you have no strength of
yourself to practise the smallest act of virtue, that
you are most unworthy that He should give you
the grace to practise it, but imploring Him, not-
withstanding, by His great mercy, to grant you
the grace to practise it as opportunity shall occur.

3. Offer yourself often to Jesus, with a great
desire of practising this virtue, in the degree of
perfection which He requires of you, and pray Him,
after having destroyed in you all that is opposed
to it, to imprint and graft it in you to His honour
and glory.

4. Be careful to practise the virtue by acts both
interior and exterior, uniting yourself to the dis-
positions and intentions with which Jesus Christ
practised it.

5. When you commit an offence against this
virtue, do not be disconcerted or discouraged, but
humble yourself before God, asking His forgiveness,
and offering Him all the honour that His Beloved
Son and His holy Mother rendered Him by the
practice of this virtue, in expiation of your fault.

Offer yourself again to Jesus, with a renewed
desire to be more faithful to Him in the future
in the practice of this virtue, and implore Him by
His great mercy to blot out your sin, and to give
you fresh store of grace, in order that you may
practise it better henceforward.

42 The Reign of Jesus

III. The Preceding Exercise applied to the

Virtue of Gentleness and Humility

of Heart.

In order to make this exercise easier, and to
bring it within the reach of all sorts of people, I
propose to apply it to a particular virtue, which
may serve you as a model for the others. Let us
take, for example, gentleness and humility of
heart, so much recommended by the most gentle
and most humble Jesus.

If you wish to establish yourself in these two
Divine virtues, take a few minutes every day to
place yourself at the feet of Jesus, and to graft
in 370U the feelings and dispositions expressed in
the following aspiration :*

O most gentle and most humble Jesus, I adore
in Thee Thy Divine and adorable gentleness and
humility. I adore and glorify Thee in the exercise
of these two virtues. Oh, how admirable art
Thou in them, as Thou art, indeed, in all others.
What honour hast Thou not rendered to Thy
Father by the continual exercise of the virtues of
gentleness and humility in Thy thoughts, in Thy
words, in Thine actions, and in Thy sufferings !
And how high hath He exalted Thee for having
endured such humiliations for His glory and for
love of us ! Blessed be He for ever, this Divine
Father, and Thou also, O kind Jesus ! He for
having thus exalted Thee because of those humilia-
tions ; Thou for having so honoured Him by Thy
gentleness and humility.

O Jesus, Thou art my Head, and I am one of

* You can choose either the end of your meditation,
of your thanksgiving after Communion, or of your visit
to the Blessed Sacrament.

Christian Virtues 43

Thy members ; Thou art my Father, and I am
one of Thy children ; Thou art my teacher and
my Master, and I am one of Thy disciples. I
ought, therefore, to follow, to imitate, and to re-
semble Thee, as far as may be, in the practice of
these virtues. But, alas ! how far am I from
doing so, filled as I am with pride and vanity, with
bitterness and impatience ! How often during
my life have I been lacking in gentleness and
humility, in thought, in affection, in word, and
in act ! Pardon me, my Saviour, pardon me ! For
the future I will strive to imitate Thee in Thy
humility and Thy gentleness. But, alas ! I
acknowledge that of myself I have no strength to
practise them, and that I am unworthy that Thou
shouldst even grant me grace to do so. Never-
theless, I implore Thee, by Thy great mercy, to
accord me this favour.

0 Jesus, I adore Thee uttering these words :
" Learn of Me, that I am meek and humble of
heart, and ye shall find rest for your souls "
(S. Matt. xi. 29).

1 adore the thought, the purpose, and the love
that Thou hadst for me in uttering them, for
Thou hadst me in Thy thoughts, O kind Jesus, and
Thou didst utter them with a very deep love for
me. O my most amiable Jesus, I give myself
to Thee, that the purpose of Thy words may be
fulfilled in me. Do not suffer aught in me which
may hinder their effect. Destroy in me all which
is opposed to gentleness and humility ; graft in
me, glorify in me, Thy gentleness and Thy humility,
for Thy love's sake.

In your Actions. — When an opportunity occurs
of practising gentleness or humility, raise your
heart to Jesus in this way :

44 The Reign of Jesus

O Jesus, I give myself to Thee to practise at
this moment the virtues of gentleness and humility
in honour of Thy gentleness, patience, and hu-
mility, in union with the dispositions and inten-
tions with which Thou hast exercised them.

After an Offence. — When you commit some
offence against these virtues, try to make repara-
tion as soon as possible, and, prostrating yourself
at the feet of the Son of God, say to Him :

O most merciful Jesus, I ask Thy forgiveness
with all my heart for the offence I have committed
against Thy Divine Majesty.

O Father of Jesus, I offer Thee all the honour
which Thy beloved Son and His most holy Mother
have rendered Thee by their gentleness and
humility as a reparation of the dishonour I have
done Thee by the offence I have committed against
these virtues.

O Jesus, O Mother of Jesus, supply what is
lacking in me, I beseech You, by offering to the
Eternal Father Your gentleness and humility in
reparation of my pride and impatience.

O good Jesus, I give myself to Thee with a
renewed desire to be more gentle and more
humble for the future ; destroy in me all pride and
impatience ; give me grace to be faithful in the
exercise of patience and humility when occasion
shall arise. I beg this of Thee, for Thine own
glory and content.

You can apply these same practices to charity,
to obedience, and to each of the other virtues.

Christian Virtues 45

IV. Of Christian Humility : its Dignity and
Necessity.

If you have a sincere desire to live Christianly
and holily, your chief care should be to ground
yourself firmly in Christian humility, for there is
no virtue more necessary or recommended with
more urgency by Our Lord. " Learn of Me, that
I am meek and humble of heart, and ye shall find
rest for your souls " (S. Matt. xi. 29).

1. Its Excellence. — It is this virtue that S. Paul
emphatically calls the virtue par excellence of Jesus
Christ.

It is the virtue proper to Christians, without
which it is impossible to be truly Christian.

It is the foundation of Christian life and holiness.

It is the guardian of all the other graces and
virtues.

2. A Source of Grace. — It is the virtue which
draws down all kinds of blessings on our souls,
for it is in humble souls that the most high and
most humble Jesus takes His rest and His delight,
according to this saying : " On whom shall I look,
to make my dwelling and My place of rest in him,
if not on him who is humble, and who fears My
words ?" (Isa. Ixvi. 2).

3. The Measure of Perfection. — It is this virtue,
together with holy love, which makes Saints — and
great Saints. For the measure of a person's
holiness is his humility. Show me a soul which is
truly humble, and I will say of that soul that she is
holy ; if she is profoundly humble, that she is greatly
holy ; if she is very humble, that she is very holy,
that she is adorned with all kinds of virtues, that
God is greatly glorified in her, that Jesus dwells

46 The Reign of Jesus

in that soul, that she is His treasure-house, and
His garden of delight, and that she will be very
great and highly placed in the kingdom of God,
according to this saying of Eternal Truth : " Who
humbleth himself shall be exalted " (S. Matt,
xxiii. 12). On the other hand, a soul without
humility is a soul without virtue ; she is a hell,
she is the abode of devils, she is an abyss of
vice.

4. The Mother of Jesus. — Lastly, one may say
that humility is, in some sort, the Mother of Jesus
as it is on account of her humility that the Blessed
Virgin was found worthy to bear Him in her
womb. It is by this virtue also that we shall
become worthy to form Him in our souls, and to
have Him to dwell and reign in our hearts. It is
for this reason that we should exceedingly love,
desire, and seek after this holy virtue. On this
account I shall deal more at length with this
subject than with the others.

V. Of Christian Humility : Humility of the
Spirit.

There are two sorts of humility — i.e., humility
of spirit and humility of heart — which, united,
make up the perfection of Christian humility.

Humility of spirit is a thorough knowledge of
what we really are in God's sight. For, in order
to know ourselves as we are, we must see ourselves,
not as we appear in the eyes, or to the delusive
judgment of men, nor such as our own vanity and
presumption imagine us to be, but such as we
are in the sight and in the judgment of God. And
to this end we must consider ourselves by the light
of God, by faith.

Christian Virtues 47

Now, if we consider ourselves by this heavenly
light and with these Divine eyes, we shall see :

1. Our Nothingness. — In so far as we are men
we are but dust and ashes, corruption and nothing-
ness ; we possess nothing, are capable of nothing,
are nothing of ourselves. For the creature having
been created out of nothing, is nothing, has
nothing, and is capable of nothing of itself.

2. Our Fallen State. — As children of Adam and
as sinners we were born in a state of original sin,
enemies of God, subjects of the Devil, objects of
horror to both Heaven and earth, incapable in our
own strength of doing the least good or of avoiding
the least evil. We have no other way of salvation
but that of renouncing Adam and all that we
inherit from him, our own selves, our own spirit,
and our own strength, in order to yield ourselves
up to Jesus Christ, and to partake of His Spirit
and of His virtue. S. Paul declares this : " We
are not," he says, " of ourselves able even to think
of doing anything good, but our capacity is of
God," and that " we cannot pronounce the Holy
Name of Jesus without the aid of His Spirit."

3. Our Unworthiness. — If we consider ourselves
in the light of God, we shall see that, as sons of
Adam and as sinners, we do not deserve to exist
or to breathe, or that the earth should bear us,
or that God should think about us, or even that
He should deign to exercise justice upon us. It
is already a great favour that He should suffer
us in His Presence, and that He should permit
the earth to bear us.

4. Our Opposition to Jesus Christ. — We shall
further see that in ourselves, in so far as we are
sinners, we are so many devils incarnate, so many
Lucifers, so many Antichrists, having nothing in us

48 The Reign of Jesus

which is not opposed to Jesus Christ. We bear
within us a devil, a Lucifer, an Antichrist — i.e.,
our own self-will, our pride, and our self-love,
which are worse than all the devils, worse than
Lucifer, worse than Antichrist ; for all that the
devils, Lucifer, and Antichrist possess of wicked-
ness they hold it from self-will, from pride, and
from self-love. In ourselves we are nothing but
a hell full of horror, of accursedness, of sin, of
abomination. We have within us the principle
and the germ of all the sins of earth and of hell ;
the corruption which original sin has put in us
being the root and source of all kinds of sin,
according to the saying of the prophet-king :
" Behold, I am shapen in wickedness, and in sin
hath my mother conceived me." Consequently,
if God did not continually bear us in the arms of
His mercy, if He did not, as it were, work a per-
petual miracle, in order to keep us from falling
into sin, we should plunge every hour into an
abyss of all kind of iniquity.

5. Our Hideous Deformity. — In short, we are so
horrible, so repulsive, that could we see ourselves
as God sees us, we should not be able to endure the
spectacle. Thus we read of a Saint who, having
asked of God to give her a true knowledge of
herself, and God having granted her prayer, saw
herself so horrible that she exclaimed : " Hold,
Lord, enough, or I shall lose courage." And the
Blessed Father Avila affirms having known a
person who, having made the same request to
God, cried out on seeing how abominable she was :
" Lord, I adjure You in mercy to take away this
mirror from before my eyes ; I cannot bear the
sight of myself."

6. Our Invincible Pride. — And after that, to

Christian Virtues 49

hold ourselves in high esteem, to natter ourselves
that we are, or that we merit, anything ! And
after that, to love grandeur and to seek after
vanity, to delight in the esteem and the praise of
men ! Oh, how strange a thing it is to see crea-
tures so pitiful and so miserable as we are, thus
puffing themselves up with pride !

We will not acknowledge our wretchedness,
thus resembling Satan, who, being by the sin which
reigns in him, the most worthless of all creatures,
is, nevertheless, so proud that he will not accept the
fact of his ignominy. This is why God has in such
horror pride and vanity, for, knowing our vileness
and our unworthiness, and seeing that they desire
to exalt themselves, they are exceedingly abhorrent
to Him ; especially as He remembers that He
Who is greatness itself, Who is All, humbled Him-
self even to nothingness, while nothingness would
exalt itself. Oh ! that is more than abhorrent to
Him.

7. Our True Greatness. — Nevertheless, as the
child of God and a member of Jesus Christ, if
you are in a state of grace, you have in you a being
and a life most noble and most sublime, and you
possess a treasure infinitely rich and precious. For,
if humility of spirit should teach you what you are
in yourself and in Adam, nevertheless, it should not
hide from you what you are in Jesus Christ and
through Jesus Christ ; and it does not oblige you
to ignore the grace God has given you in His Son ;
otherwise this would be a false humility. But
to acknowledge that all you have of good comes
solely of the mercy of God, without any merit of
your own — in this consists true humility of spirit.

50 The Reign of Jesus

VI. Of Christian Humility : Humility of
Heart.

i. Its Necessity. — It is not enough to possess
humility of mind, which shows us our wretchedness
and our unworthiness. Humility of mind without
humility of heart is a diabolical humility, for the
devils, who have no humility of heart, yet possess
humility of mind, because they know very well
their unworthiness and accursedness. For this
reason we must learn of our Divine Teacher, Who
is Jesus, to be humble, not only in mind, but in
heart.

2. Its Nature. — Now, humility of heart consists —
(i) in loving our lowliness and helplessness, and in
rejoicing to be little, abject, and despised ; (2) in
treating ourselves in private as such ; (3) in re-
joicing in being esteemed and treated as such by
others ; (4) in never excusing or justifying our-
selves, save in case of necessity ; (5) in never
complaining of anyone, bearing in mind that,
having in ourselves the germ of all evil, we merit
all kind of blame and bad treatment ; (6) in loving
with all our heart and in embracing all occasions
of contumely, humiliation, scorn, and all that is
capable of humbling us.

3. Jesus is our Teacher. — In short, the true hu-
mility of heart that Our Lord Jesus Christ wills us
to learn of Him, and which is the perfect Christian
humility, consists in being humble, as Jesus Christ
was humble on earth — that is to say, in having a
horror of the spirit of greatness and vanity, in
loving contumely and humiliation, in choosing
always and in all things that which is lowest and
most humiliating, in desiring ever to be abased,

Christian Virtues 51

even as Jesus Christ was abased in His Incarnation,
in His Life, in His Passion, and in His Death.

4. Jesus is our Example. — In His Incarnation
" He humbled Himself," as saith S. Paul, " taking
the form of a servant." He willed to be born in a
stable ; He subjected Himself to the weakness
and dependence of infancy, and abased Himself
in a thousand other ways.

In His Passion He says Himself that " He is a
worm and no man, the contempt of men, and the
lowest of all people ; He bears the weight of the
wrath of His Father, Whose severity is so great
that it causes Him to sweat blood, and in such
abundance that the ground in the Garden of Olives
is watered by it. He is subject, as He assures
us Himself, to the powers of darkness — that is
to say, of devils, who, by the hands of the Jews
whom they possessed, and by Pilate and Herod,
whom they led, cause Him to suffer all possible
indignities. Wisdom uncreate is treated by the
soldiers and by Herod as a madman. He is
scourged and nailed to the Cross like a slave and
a robber. God, His Support, forsakes Him, and
looks upon Him as if He, in His own Person, had
committed all the sins of the whole world. In
short, to speak the language of the Apostle : " He
became anathema, and the accursed of the whole
world " (Gal. hi. 13) ; and even — O strange and
terrible debasement ! — He was made sin by the
power and justice of God. For it is thus that
S. Paul speaks : " Deus eum pro nobis peccatum
fecit " — " God made Him sin for our sake "
(2 Cor. v. 21) — that is to say, He bore, not only
the confusion and humiliation that sinners merit,
but also the ignominy and infamy which are
due to sin, which is the most vile and abject

52 The Reign of Jesus

state to which God can reduce the bitterest of
His enemies.

O God ! what a humiliation for a God, for the
Only Son of God, for the Sovereign Lord of the
universe, to be reduced to this ! O Lord Jesus,
is it possible that Thou dost so love man as to
humble Thyself to this extent for his sake ? O
man, how is it possible thou shouldst still be proud,
seeing thy God thus abased for love of thee ?
O my Saviour, grant that I may be humbled and
abased with Thee, that I may share Thy deep
humility, and incline my heart to bear all the
confusion and humiliations which are due to the
sinner and to sin !

5. Practical Conclusion. — It is in this that per-
fect Christian humility consists : in being always
ready to be treated, not only as a sinner merits
to be treated, but also to bear all the ignominy
and contempt which are due to sin itself, because
our Head, Who is Jesus, the most Holy One, He
Who is all holiness, bore them, while we, who are
nothing but sin and accursedness — we deserve
them.

Oh, if these truths were thoroughly impressed
on our mind, we should find that we have great
reason to exclaim with S. Gertrude : " Lord, one
of the greatest miracles that Thou workest in the
whole world is to permit the earth to bear me."

VII. Of Humility : its Practice.

The practice of the virtue of humility may be
considered in its preparation and in its exercise.

1. In its Preparation. — (1) You must first have
a profound conviction of your powerlessness for
any sort of good, and of the urgent need you have

Christian Virtues 53

of Jesus Christ and of His grace, and on this
account you should cry unceasingly to your
Liberator, and have recourse to His grace at
every instant, trusting only in His power and
goodness.

(2) Renounce yourself, your own spirit, all the
power and capacity that you think you possess.

(3) After this act of renunciation adore Jesus
Christ, and give yourself wholly to Him, im-
ploring Him to strip you of your own nature, and
to take possession of all that you are, and to
make use of it. Protest to Him that you desire
to renounce your own spirit, which is a spirit of
pride and vanity ; to strip yourself of all your
intentions, inclinations, and dispositions, in order
to live with His Spirit, with His Divine and
adorable intentions, inclinations, and dispositions.

2. In its Practice. — (1) When an opportunity
occurs of practising this virtue, raise your heart
to Jesus, and say to Him :

" O most humble Jesus, I offer Thee this action,
in honour of Thy holy abasement, and of that of
thy holy Mother. O good Jesus, destroy in me
all pride, all vanity, and make Thy Divine humility
to reign in me."

(2) Be always ready and willing to perform any
base and menial work, in order to humble your
pride.

(3) Before beginning your actions, humble your-
self in the sight of God, bearing in mind that you
are unworthy to live, and incapable of doing any
good unless He gives you His grace.

(4) If you are blamed, if you are despised, accept
it as something which is your due, and in honour
of the contempt and calumny which were showered
on the Son of God.

54 The Reign of Jesus

(5) If one does you honour, or if you receive
praise or blessing, offer them to God.

(6) When you fall into some sin against holy
humility, try and make reparation for your offence
as soon as possible.*

VIII. Of Trust and the Abandonment of
Oneself into the Hands of God.

Humility is the mother of trust, for the know-
ledge that we are devoid of all good, of all virtue,
and of all power, and of all capacity for serving
God, and that we are a true hell, full of all kind of
evil and abomination, prevents us from trusting in
ourselves and in what is in ourselves. It obliges us,
on the contrary, to come out of ourselves, as out
of a hell, in order to withdraw ourselves into Jesus
as into our Paradise, in Whom we find an abund-
ance of all that is lacking in ourselves. It obliges
us to lean on Him, and to confide in Him, as in
One Who has been given us by the Eternal Father
to be our salvation, our justification, our virtue,
our sanctification, our treasure, our strength, our
life, and our all. It is to this that Jesus Himself
leads us when He invites us so lovingly and so
urgently to come to Him with confidence, saying :
" Come unto Me, ye who travail and are heavy
laden, and ye shall find rest unto your souls '
(S. Matt. xi. 28). I will loose you from the burden
of your misery. He assures us that He will cast
out no one of those who come to Him : " Et eum,
qui venit ad me, non ejiciam foras " (S. John

vi. 37)-

In order to inspire us with this confidence, our
tender and loving Saviour has deigned to adopt

* Vide p. 44.

Christian Virtues 55

certain titles, to make certain promises, and to
perform certain marvellous actions.

1. The Titles. — Could He choose names more
sweet, or titles more tender ? He calls Himself
our Friend, our Advocate, our Doctor, our Pastor,
our Brother, our Father, our Soul, our Spirit, and
the Spouse of our souls. He calls us His sheep,
His brethren, His children, His portion, His
heritage, His soul, His heart, and our souls His
spouses.

See how He proves Himself a mother to us in
His care and vigilance. He assures us that He
bears us, and will always bear us, in His bosom
and in His heart. And He is not content to say
it once j He repeats it again and again five times
in the same passage. He affirms elsewhere that
if a mother could be found to forget the child she
had borne, He will never forget us ; that He has
inscribed us on His hands, in order to have us
always before His eyes ; that whoever touches us
touches the apple of His eye.

See, too, how powerful an Advocate He has been
for us with His Father, for that Father loves us as
He loves His Son.

He wills us to be where He is — that is to say,
reposing with Him in the E*bsom and in the Heart
of His Father, seated with Him ori His throne ; in
a word, He wills that we should be one with Him,
that we should be entirely one with Him and with
His Father (S. John xvii.).

2. The Promises. — It would seem that God can-
not sufficiently assure us, in a thousand places in
Holy Scripture, how dear and pleasing to Him is
trust ; how, also, He loves and favours those who
trust in Him and abandon themselves to the care
of His Divine Providence.

56 The Reign of Jesus

He promises them solemnly —

(1) His Protection. — His mercy will surround
them on every side, and He Himself will be always
beside them. He will be to them a shield and
buckler.

(2) The Knowledge of His Sweetness. — He will
make them taste of His sweetness.

(3) Joy. — They shall be full of gladness, and He
will make His abode in them.

(4) His Light. — They who trust in Him know
the truth ; that is to say, He will manifest Himself
to them — He, the Supreme Truth.

(5) Perseverance. — They shall not sin, or, at least,
shall not fall into such sins as can separate them
from Him. Even if we offend Him, He promises
us, if we turn to Him with humility, repentance,
and trust in His goodness, and the resolution to
forsake our sin, to receive us, to embrace us, to
forget all our offences, and to clothe us with the
garment of His grace and of His love.

(6) Temporal Things. — He desires that we should
not be uneasy about our necessary food and cloth-
ing. He knows that we have need of these things,
and He will take care to provide them.

The Heart of Jesus has not changed since He
made us such promises. He said to S. Gertrude :
" He pierces My Heart with a dart of love who
hath a firm trust that I can, and that I will, assist
him faithfully in all things. This trust makes so
irresistible an appeal to My Goodness that I can
no more separate Myself from Him " (Book iii. 7).

Who will not trust, who will not give himself up
to the care and guidance of a friend, a brother, a
father, a spouse, who has infinite wisdom to know
what is best for us, to foresee all that can happen
to us, and to choose the means the most fitting

Christian Virtues 57

for leading us to supreme happiness — who has,
moreover, the exceeding goodness which desires
only our good, together with an immense power
to turn aside the evil which threatens us, and to
accomplish the good which He desires to procure
us ?

3. His Actions. — The words and promises of Our
Lord are not a vain breath. See what He has done
and suffered for you in His Incarnation, in His Life,
in His Passion, and in His Death ; what He still
does every day in the most Holy Sacrament of the
Eucharist ; how He came down from Heaven to
earth for love of you ; how He humbled Himself,
even to the point of becoming a little child, of
being born in a stable, of being subject to the
miseries and necessities of a human, suffering and
mortal life ; how He spent all His time, all His
thoughts, words, and actions for you ; how He
yielded up His most holy Body to Pilate, to the
tormentors, to the Cross ; how He gave His Life,
and shed His Blood to the last drop ; how He gives
you, and how often ! in the Holy Eucharist, His
Body, His Blood, His Soul, His Divinity, all His
treasures, all He is and all He has that is dearest
and most precious.

O Goodness ! O Love ! O most kind and most
loveworthy Jesus ! " Let those hope in Thee who
know Thy most sweet and most holy Name " (Ps.
ix. n), which is none other than Love and Good-
ness ; for Thou art all Love, all Goodness, and all
Mercy ! But I am not surprised that there are
few who put all their trust in Thee, because there
are so few who study to know and to consider the
effects of Thine infinite Goodness. O my Saviour,
in truth we must avow ourselves most wretched
if we do not trust in Thy Goodness, after having

58 The Reign of Jesus

received so many, so many proofs of Thy Love
for us ! For if Thou hast already done and
suffered so much, if Thou hast already given us
such priceless gifts, what wouldst Thou do, and
what wouldst Thou give us, if we approached Thee
with humility and trust ?

(1) Let us then, firstly, have a great desire to
establish in our hearts this Divine virtue. Let us
not be afraid, but let us be bold in making noble
plans for serving and loving most perfectly and
most holily our most adorable and loveworthy
Jesus, and for undertaking great things for His
glory, according to the power and the grace which
He shall give us. For, even though we can do
nothing of ourselves, in Him we can do all things,
and His help will not be lacking if we trust in His
Goodness.

(2) Let us leave in His hands, and let us abandon
to the fatherly care of His Divine Providence, all
that concerns us both in body and soul ; things
temporal and spiritual — our health, our reputation,
our possessions, our business ; those who are dear
to us ; our past sins, our advancement in the paths
of virtue and of His love, our life, our death, even
our salvation and our eternity — in fact, all things
— in the assurance that, in His Goodness, He will
care for all and that He will deal with all things in
the best way.

(3) Let us be careful never to put our trust
either in the power or in the favour of our friends,
nor in our possessions, nor in our intelligence, nor
in our learning, nor in our strength, nor in our
good desires and resolutions, nor in our prayers,
nor even in the trust which we feel we have in
God, nor in human means, nor in any created thing,
but in the mercy of God alone. I do not mean

Christian Virtues 59

that we should not use all these means, and bring,
on our side, all that it is in our power to bring, to
the struggle with sin, to the practice of virtue, to
the conduct and execution of such affairs as God
has entrusted to us, and to the fulfilment of the
obligations attached to our position. But we
should renounce all the support and all the confi-
dence which we may have in such things, and lean
entirely on the Goodness of our Lord alone.

(4) Cast into the bosom of God, as S. Paul
counsels us, all your cares and all your anxieties,
and He will care for you. " My child," said Our
Lord to S. Catherine of Siena, " forget thyself
and think only of Me, and I will think continually
of thee."

Take to yourself this counsel. Let your chief
care be to avoid all that is displeasing to Our Lord,
and to serve and love Him perfectly, and He will
turn all things, even your faults, to your advantage.

(5) Accustom yourself to make frequent acts of
trust in Go»pl, but particularly when you are
attacked by thoughts or feelings of apprehension,
and misgiving, either on account of your past sins
or for some other reason. Raise your heart at
once to Jesus, and say to Him with the royal
Prophet : " Ad te, Domine, levavi animam meam ;
Deus meus, in te confido, non erubescam " — " O
Lord, I have lifted up my soul and my heart to
Thee ; in Thee, O God, do I put my trust ; let me
not be confounded nor frustrated in my expecta-
tion " (Ps. xxiv. 12).

Or else say with the Prophet Isaiah : " Ecce
Deus salvator meus, fiducialiter agam, et non
timebo " — " Behold, God is my Saviour : I will
walk confidently in all my ways, and will fear
nothing " (Isa. xii. 2).

60 The Reign of Jesus

Or, again, with holy Job : " Etiamsi occiderit
me, in ipso sperabo " — " Though God slay me, yet
will I trust in Him " (Job xiii. 15).

Or, again, with the poor man of the Gospel :
" Credo, Domine, adjuva incredulitatem meam "
— " Lord, I believe, help Thou mine unbelief "
(S. Markix. 23).

Or else with the holy Apostles : " Domine,
adauge nobis fidem " — " Lord, increase our faith "
(S. Luke xvii. 5).

Or else say : 0 good Jesus, it is in Thee alone
that I put my trust. O my Strength and mine only
Refuge, I give and abandon myself to Thee ; do
with me as it shall please Thee. O my sweet Love ,
O my cherished Hope, I offer and present to Thee
my being, my life, my soul, and all I possess in
order that Thou mayest dispose of them in time
and in eternity as it shall please Thee for Thy
honour and glory."

(6) Lastly, trust is a gift of God which is the
consequence of humility and love. For this reason
ask it of God, and He will give it you, and en-
deavour to perform your actions in the spirit of
humility and for the pure love of God, and you
will soon taste the sweetness and peace which
accompany the virtue of trust.

IX. Of Christian Submission and Obedience.

The continual submission which we should have
to the holy Will of God is the most universal of
all virtues, and the one which can be the most
often practised, because every hour offers us oppor-
tunities of renouncing our own will and of sub-
mitting to that of God, which Will it is always
easy to recognize. God has willed that the things

Christian Virtues 61

which are most necessary should be easy to find.
For instance, sun, air, water are most necessary
to the natural life of man, therefore they are
within the reach of all.

In the same way God, having placed us in this
world only to do His Will, and thus to work out
our salvation, it is extremely necessary that we
should be able easily to know what is the Will of
God in all that we have to do. It is for this reason
that He has made it very easy to know, manifesting
it in five principal ways which are very sure and
evident :

i. By His Commandments.

2. By His counsels.

3. By the rules and obligations of our position
in life.

4. Through those who have authority over us.

5. By external events, for all that happens is an
infallible sign of the Will of God, either of His
absolute or of His permissive Will ; so that, if we
open ever so little the eyes of faith it will be easy
for us at all times and in all circumstances to know
what is the Holy Will of God, and this knowledge
should make us love it and lead us to submit to it .

But in order thoroughly to implant in ourselves
this spirit of submission it is necessary to impress
deeply on our minds four truths which faith teaches
us :

1. That the same faith which teaches us that
there is one God, Who has created all things,
obliges us to believe that this great God orders
and rules all things, without exception, either by
His positive or by His permissive Will. That
nothing takes place in the world which is not
subject to His Divine direction, and which is not
an expression either of His positive or of His per-

62 The Reign of Jesus

missive Will, which are, as it were, the two arms
of His Providence with which He governs all
things: " Tua, Pater, providentia gubernat "
(Wisdom xiv. 3).

2. God neither wills nor permits anything save
for His greater honour and glory, and, as a matter
of fact, He turns everything to His greater glory.
For God, being the Creator and Ruler of the world,
having made all things for Himself, possessing an
infinite zeal for His own glory, and possessing also
infinite wisdom and power for leading all things
to this end, it is most certain that He wills or
permits nothing which is not for His greater glory
and even for the good of those who love Him and
submit themselves to His Divine ordinances. For
the Apostle tells us : " All things work together
for good to them who love God." So that, if we
desire to love God and adore His Holy Will in all
things, all will turn to our greater good, and it
depends only on ourselves that it should be so.

3. The Will of God, whether positive or permis-
sive, is infinitely holy, just, adorable, and loving,
and it merits to be infinitely adored, loved, arid
glorified in all things.

4. Our Lord Jesus Christ professed, from the
first moment of His life and from the time He came
into the world, never to do His own Will, but His
Father's, according to the witness borne by S. Paul
in writing to the Hebrews : " Jesus coming into
the world says (speaking to His Eternal Father) :
Behold, I come ; in the beginning of the Book it
is written of Me that I should do Thy Will, O
God "; and according to what He afterwards said
Himself : " I came down from Heaven, not to do
Mine own Will, but the Will of Him Who sent Me."
And He never did His own Will, but although His

Christian Virtues 63

Will was holy, deified, and adorable, yet He re-
nounced it, yielded it up, and, as it were, annihi-
lated it, in order to do His Father's Will, saying
incessantly to Him in all circumstances what He
said to Him on the eve of His death in the Garden
of Olives : "Not My Will, but Thine be done, O
My Father."

If we reflect on these truths, we shall find great
facility in submitting in all things to the most
adorable Will of God. For if we reflect that God
orders and disposes all that happens in the world,
that He orders all things for His honour and glory
and for our greater good, and that His ordering
is always most just and most loving, we shall not
attribute what happens to chance nor to the
malice of the Devil or of men, but to the Provi-
dence of God, which we shall love and embrace
tenderly. For we well know that the Providence
of God is holy and loving, that it orders or permits
nothing which is not for our good and for His
greater glory — a glory which we should love above
all things, seeing that we are in the world only to
love and to advance the glory of God.

And if we consider attentively that our Head,
Who is Jesus, set on one side and, as it were,
annihilated a Will so holy and so Divine as was
His, in order to submit Himself to the most
rigorous and most severe Will of His Father, Who
willed that He should suffer torments so mysteri-
ous, that He should die a death so cruel and so
shameful, • and that for His enemies — if we con-
sider this, shall we feel reluctance in renouncing a
will so depraved and tainted by sin as is ours, and
in making the most holy, most sweet, and most
loving Will of God live and reign in its place.

It is in this that Christian submission and obedi-

64 The Reign of Jesus

ence consists — i.e., in continuing the most perfect
submission and obedience which Jesus Christ
rendered to the Will of His Father, not only when
it was made known to Him by His Father Himself,
but when it was declared to Him by His Blessed
Mother, by S. Joseph, by the Angel who led them
into Egypt, by the Jews, by Herod, and by Pilate.
For He submitted not only to His Father, but He
made Himself subject to all created beings for the
glory of His Father and for our sake.

X. Practice of Christian Submission and
Obedience.

1. In order to put these truths into practice,
adore in Jesus this Divine and adorable submis-
sion which He practised so perfectly. Lay down
at His feet your will, your desires and inclinations,
protesting to Him that you desire to have none
other, save His alone, and praying Him to make
them to reign perfectly in you.

2. Live in the continual determination rather to
die and to suffer all kinds of torments than to dis-
obey the least of God's Commandments ; and in
the general determination of being guided by His
counsel in accordance with the light and grace He
shall give you, and in accordance with your posi-
tion in life and with the advice of your director.

3. Consider and honour those who are your
superiors and who have authority over you as
occupying the place of Jesus Christ on earth, and
submit to their will as to the will of Jesus Christ
provided it be not in evident opposition to what
God orders or forbids.

f ft, The if rlnce of the AP0stles, S. Peter, goes
iarther still ; for he exhorts us to submit ourselves

Christian Virtues 65

to all human creatures for the love of God : " Sub-
jecti estote omni humanse creaturae, propter
Deum " (S. Pet. ii. 13). And S. Paul desires us
to esteem all others our superiors : " Superiores
sibi invicem arbitrantes " (Phil. ii. 3). According,
therefore, to the Divine teaching of these two
great Apostles, we should deem all kinds of persons
as our superiors, and be ready to renounce our
own judgment and will in order to submit our-
selves to the judgment and will of others. For, in
our character of Christians who share the feelings
and dispositions of Jesus Christ, we should make
profession, with this same Jesus Christ, never to do
our own will, but always to do the will of God ;
and in doubtful cases — that is to say, when we do
not surely know what is the will of God — we
should do the will of no matter whom, looking
upon all men as our superiors, and submitting to
their will in what is possible, and in what is not
opposed to the law of God and to the obligations
of our position — giving the preference, however, to
those who have the most authority and right over us.

5. Consider the laws, rules, and obligations of
your position or condition as so. many unmis-
takable signs of what God requires of you. And
in honour of the strict obedience of Jesus and of
His submission — not only to the rules His Father
gave Him and to the times He prescribed for all
His actions, but also to human laws — submit
yourself to the rules and obligations of your
position in life, to the times fixed for fulfilling
your various duties, and even to human and civil
laws ; and all this for love of Him, Who, for your
sake, endured all this subjection.

6. In all the events which happen, whether by
the positive Will of God or by His permission,

66 The Reign of Jesus

adore, bless, and love both the one and the other,
and declare, in the words of His beloved Son, with
the desire of doing so, as far as possible, in a like
spirit, with a like love, and with a like submission
and humility : " Pater, non quod ego volo, sed
quod tu ; non mea voluntas, sed tua fiat " — " O
My Father, not what I will, but what Thou wiliest ;
not My will, but Thine, be done " (S. Mark xiv. 36).
" Ita, Pater, quoniam sic fuit placitum ante te "—
" Even so, Father, for thus it seemeth good in Thy
sight " (S. Matt. xi. 26).

7. When you feel an inclination or desire for a
thing, offer it up at once at the feet of Jesus ; and
if the desire be strong, do not cease to re-
nounce it, to annihilate it, and to pray Jesus to
extinguish it in you, until you feel yourself ready
to desire the opposite, if it be His Will.

8. When there comes to you some apprehension
of losing your health, your reputation, or your
possessions, or your parents, your children, your
friends, or some such thing, offer up your will at
the feet of Jesus to adore, love, and bless His Will,
as if the event had already happened, or against
the time when it will happen, in this way :

" 0 Jesus, I offer up my will and all my desires
at Thy feet, and I adore, love, and praise with all
my heart Thy most holy and most loving Will ;
and in spite of the repugnance I feel, and of the
opposition of my feelings, I love, bless, and glorify
Thee in all that it has pleased, and shall please,
Thee to order for me, and for those belonging to
me, in time and in eternity. Let the most holy
Will of my Jesus be done ! Let my will be
destroyed and annihilated for ever, that His may
reign and be accomplished eternally on earth as in
Heaven !"

Christian Virtues 67

XI. The Perfection of Christian Submission
and Obedience.

Not only did Jesus Christ our Lord do all the
Will of His Father, and submit to Him* and to all
things for love of Him, but He also found His
content, His felicity, and His Paradise in doing so.
" Meus cibus est, ut faciam voluntatem ejus qui
misit me " — " My meat," He says, "is to do the
Will of Him that sent Me " (S. John iv. 34)— that
is to say, I have nothing more at heart, nothing
that is more delightful to Me, than to do the Will
of My Father. For, in fact, all that He did, He
took an infinite delight in doing, because it was
His Father's Will. In the sufferings He endured
He found joy and felicity because it was His
Father's good pleasure. For this reason the Holy
Spirit, speaking of the day of His Passion and of
His death, calls it " the day of the joy of His
Heart " (Cant. iii. 2). In the same way, in all
the events which happened to Him, He found
peace and contentment of mind, inasmuch as He
saw in them all, only the most loveworthy Will of
His Father.

Thus, in our character of Christians who should
share the feelings and dispositions of their Head,
we should not only submit to God and to all that
happens, for His love's sake, but we should also
find in doing so, our content, our blessedness, and
our Paradise. It is in this that the supreme per-
fection of Christian submission consists. It is the
prayer which we address every day to God : " Fiat
voluntas tua, sicut in coelo et in terra " — " Thy
Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven."

There are two reasons which oblige us to act thus :

1. Because, being created only in order to glorify

68 The Reign of Jesus

God, and the glory of God being our supreme
object, it follows that we should find our happiness
in the glory of God, and, consequently, in all the
operations of His divine Will, because they all
work together for His greater glory.

2. Because our Lord, having declared that He
wills us to be one with Him and with His Father,
it follows that we should have one spirit and one
mind with Him. Consequently, we should find our
joy, our blessedness, and our paradise where the
Saints, the Blessed Virgin, the Son of God, and
the eternal Father find theirs.

Now, the Saints, the Blessed Virgin, the Son of
God, and the eternal Father find their content
and their paradise in all things, because they see
in everything the Will of God, which is all their joy.

Thus, we find the sure means, by the grace of
our Lord, of living always content and of pos-
sessing a Paradise on earth. In truth, we should be
difficult to please if we were not content with what
pleases God, the Angels, and the Saints, who
rejoice less in the great glory they enjoy than in
the accomplishment of the Will of God in them —
that is to say, in the fact that God finds His
content and His pleasure in glorifying them.
Shall we complain at sharing the paradise of the
Mother of God, of the Son of God, and of the
eternal Father ?

* XII. The Practice of Perfect Christian
Submission.

If, then, you wish to possess a real paradise on
this earth —

i. Pray Jesus to establish in you the holy dis-
position of a perfect submission to His divine Will.

Christian Virtues 69

And in order to co-operate with Him, endeavour,
on your side, not only to submit to God in all
things, but also to submit with joy and content.

2. When you perform an action, try to perform
it, not only for love of our Lord, but also with such
love for Him that you find your content, your
felicity, and your paradise in doing it, because it
is for His sake, and because it is His Will and His
pleasure that you should do it.

3. When something happens which is contrary
to your will, find your content in it because it is
the Will of God. If what you desire happens,
rejoice, not because your will is accomplished, but
because the Will of God is done.

4. In what happens in the world, consider only
the Will and the permission of God, reflecting that
God finds His content in the accomplishment of
His Will, both positive and permissive, and that
all that happens, happens according to His good
pleasure and for His glory. In all that happens,
then, detest, on the one hand, the sins which are
committed against Him, and, on the other, find
your satisfaction in those things in which He finds
His.

5. I do not say that you will feel content and
joy in all you do and suffer, and in all that happens
in the world — that is only for the Blessed — but I
speak here of the joy and content of mind and will
which you may easily enjoy by the grace of our
Lord. For you have only to say : " My God, I
desire, if it please Thee, to find my joy in willing,
in doing, or in suffering this or that because it is
Thy Will and pleasure." By this means you
will have content of mind and will in all things.
And this practice, reiterated several times, will
even diminish and destroy the natural sorrow and

jo The Reign of Jesus

repugnance which you may sometimes feel, and will
cause you even to feel sweetness and content, where
before you were only sensible of bitterness and
sorrow.

6. To familiarize yourself with this practice,
accustom yourself, in all that happens in this world,
to raise your heart to Jesus, and say to Him :

" O Jesus, it is Thou Who orderest, Who dost,
or Who permittest these things, and Thou wiliest
and dost all things with infinite content. 0 my
God, I give myself to Thee. Grant, if it please
Thee, that I may have one spirit, one mind, one
will with Thee ; that I may will what Thou wiliest ;
that I may find my joy in willing it, as Thou findest
Thine ; and that I may find my felicity and my
paradise in all that Thou dost or wiliest."

7. In those cases when you feel repugnance,
say :

" O Jesus, in spite of the repugnance of my self-
will and my self-love, I desire to suffer this trouble
or affliction (or I desire to do this action) for love
of Thee, and I desire to suffer (or to do) it in such
a manner, for Thy love's sake, as to find in so doing
my felicity and my paradise, because it is Thy
holy Will."

8. When, in performing an action or in hearing
of an event which has happened, you feel consola-
tion and pleasure, say :

" O Jesus, I rejoice that it has happened thus
(or I desire to do this action), not because it has
happened according to my desire (or because it
pleases me to do so), but because it is Thy Will
and Thy pleasure."

In acting thus you will begin your paradise
even^in this world, you will enjoy unfailing peace
and content, you will perform your actions as God

Christian Virtues 71

performs His, and as our Lord Jesus Christ per-
formed His when He was on earth — that is to say,
in a spirit of joy and contentment. That is what
He desires, and what He asked for us of His Father
on the eve of His death in these words : " Ut
habeunt gaudium meum impletum in semetipsis "
— " That My joy may be fulfilled in them "
(S. John xvii. 13).

This is the supreme perfection of Christian sub-
mission and of pure love of God, for the supreme
degree of divine love consists in doing, enduring,
and accepting all things for the love of God with
joy and content. He who makes this holy use of
the things of this world, who endures the trouble
which comes to him in this frame of mind, and
who performs his actions in this manner, will do
more honour to God and please Him better, and
will make more progress in a single day in the
paths of His love, than he would do in his whole
life if he acted otherwise.

XIII. Of Christian Charity.

It is not without reason that the Son of God,
after saying in His Gospel that the first and
greatest commandment of God is to love Him
with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all
our strength, declares next that the second com-
mandment, which obliges us to love our neighbour
as ourself, is like unto the first. In fact, the love
of God and the love of our neighbour are insepar-
able. They are not two loves ; they are one single
love ; and we should love our neighbour with the
same heart, the same love, with which we love
God, because we should love him not in himself
and for himself, but in God and for God — or, to

72 The Reign of Jesus

speak more exactly, it is God Himself Whom we
should love in our neighbour.

It is thus that Jesus loves us. He loves us in
His Father and for His Father — or, rather, He
loves His Father in us, and He desires us to love
one another as He loves us. " This," says He,
" is my commandment, that ye love one another,
as I have loved you " (S. John xv. 12).

It is in this that Christian charity consists — in
loving one another as Jesus Christ loves us. Now,
He so loves us, that He gives us all His wealth,
all His treasures, even Himself, and employs all
His power and all the resources of His wisdom
and of His goodness, in order to do us good.
His love for us is so exceeding great that He
bears, very gently and patiently, with all our
faults, and it is He Who seeks us out first when
we have sinned against Him. He seems, so to
say, to prefer our advantage, our happiness, and
our interest, to His own, having subjected Himself
during His mortal life to all kind of distress, of
trouble, and of torments, in order to free us from
them and make us blessed. In a word, He has so
much love for us that He employs His whole life,
His body, His soul, His time, His eternity, His
Divinity, and His Humanity, all He is, all He has,
and all that He is capable of, for us, and is all
charity and all love for us in thought, in word,
and in act.

That is the rule and model of Christian charity.
That is what our Lord requires of us when He
commands us to love one another as He loves us.
It is thus that we should love one another, doing
for each other what Jesus Christ did for us, accord-
ing to the measure of ability which He gives us.

In order to induce and excite these feelings in

Christian Virtues 73

yourself, consider your neighbour and God in him
— that is to say :

1. Consider your neighbour as a being who comes
out of the heart and the goodness of God, who
belongs to God, who is created to return to God,
to live one day in the bosom of God, to glorify
God eternally, and in whom God will, as a matter
of fact, be eternally glorified, either in His mercy
or in His justice.

2. Consider him as something that God loves,
in whatever state he may be, for God loves all that
He has created, even the devils in so far as they
are His creatures, and He hates nothing which He
has made. There is only sin, which He did not
make, that He has in horror.

3. Consider him as one who has been originated
by the same principle as you yourself ; who is a
child of the same Father ; who is created for the
same object ; who belongs to the same Saviour ;
who is bought with the same price — that is to say,
with the precious Blood of Jesus Christ ; who is a
member of the same Head — that is, of Jesus ; and of
the same Body — that is, the Church of Jesus ; fed
with the same Food — that is, the Body and Blood
of Jesus ; and with whom, consequently, you
should be one spirit, one soul, and one heart.

4. Consider him, further, as the temple of the
living God, bearing the mark of the most Holy
Trinity, and the badge of Jesus Christ ; as a part
of Jesus Christ, bone of His bone, flesh of His
flesh ; as one for whom Jesus Christ has laboured
much, suffered much, spent much time, and given
His Blood and His Life ; and, lastly, as one whom
He recommends to you as Himself, assuring you,
that that which ye do to the least of His — that is,
of those who believe in Him — " ye do it unto Him "

74 The Reign of Jesus

(S. Matt. xxv. 40) . Oh, if we weighed and considered
the importance of these truths, what love, what
respect, what honour should we have one for the
other ! What a dread should we have of offending
against Christian love and union, either in thought,
in word, or in deed ! What should we not be
ready to do, to suffer, one for another ! With
what charity and patience should we not bear
with, and excuse, the faults of others ! With what
gentleness, modesty, and restraint should we not
converse with one another ! What care should
we not take to content one another, and to please
all, in all things tending to edification, as S. Paul
requires of us (Rom. xv. 2) ! O Jesus, God of
Love and Charity, imprint these truths and these
dispositions in our hearts and minds !

XIV. The Practice of Christian Charity.

If you wish to live in the spirit of Christian
charity, which is nothing else than the continua-
tion and completion of the charity of Jesus, it is
necessary that you should often exercise yourself
in the following practices :

1. At the Feet of Jesus. — Adore Jesus, Who is
all charity ; praise Him for all the glory He ren-
dered to His Father by His continual exercise of
charity. Ask His forgiveness for all the offences
you have ever committed against this virtue,
begging Him to offer His charity to His Father
in atonement for these offences. Offer yourself to
Him, imploring Him to destroy in your thoughts,
words, and deeds, all that is opposed to this virtue,
and to cause to live and reign in your heart His
most perfect charity.

Read and weigh often these words of S. Paul :

Christian Virtues 75

" Charity is patient, she is kind ; charity is not
envious, she is not proud, she is not puffed up,
she is not ambitious, she seeketh not her own, she
is not given to anger, she thinketh no evil. She
rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth.
She endureth all things, she belie veth all things,
she hopeth all things, she suffereth all things.
Charity never faileth " (1 Cor. xiii. 4-8).

Adore Jesus, pronouncing these words by the
mouth of His Apostle ; offer yourself to Him with
the intention of putting them into practice, and
to this end pray Him to give you His grace.

2. In Serving One's Neighbour. — In the services
you render to others, and in all the actions which
you do for your neighbour, whether by obligation,
or out of charity, raise your heart to Jesus, and
say to Him :

" 0 Jesus, I desire to do this action, if it pleaseth
Thee, in honour of, and in union with, the charity
Thou hast for this person, and for love of Thee,
Whom I desire to see and to serve in this same
person."

3. With Regard to Oneself. — When, by necessity,
you give some repose, food, or refreshment to your
body, do so with this same intention, looking upon
your health, your life, and your body, not as
belonging to yourself, but as a part of Jesus,
as something which belongs to Jesus, according
to this divine saying, " Corpus autem Domino "
(1 Cor. vi. 13), and of which, in consequence, you
should be careful, not for your own sake, but for
love of Jesus, so far as is necessary for His service,
bearing in mind, after the example of S. Gertrude,
what our Lord said, that " what is done to one
of the least of His, is done to Him."

4. In Social Intercourse. — When you salute or

y6 The Reign of Jesus

do honour to anyone, salute him and honour him
as the temple and image of God, and as a member
of Jesus Christ.

In pronouncing speeches and compliments, do
not permit your tongue to utter words of kindness
which do not come from your heart. For there is
this difference between holy and Christian souls
and worldly souls — that, while both make use of
the same compliments, and manner of speech,
the former speak from the heart, whereas the latter
pronounce them with their lips only, in a deceitful
spirit of simulated kindness.

I do not say that it is necessary that you should
always have these thoughts and intentions in your
mind each time you salute anyone or utter a
friendly word or render some service to your
neighbour. But have at least at the bottom of
your heart the general intention to perform all
your actions thus in the spirit of the love of Jesus,
and try to renew this intention before God when
He puts it into your mind to do so.

5. In Ones Dislikes and Antipathies. — When you
are conscious of any dislike, any aversion, any feel-
ing of envy for your neighbour, be careful, from the
beginning, to renounce it with energy, and to offer
it at the feet of our Lord, praying Him to destroy
it, and to fill you with His divine charity. Then
make interior acts of charity with regard to the
person, saying :

" 0 Jesus, I desire to love this person for love
of Thee. Yea, my Saviour, in honour of, and in
union with, the love Thou bearest him, I desire to
love him with all my heart, and I offer myself to
Thee to do and endure for him all it shall please
Thee."

Endeavour to speak to him, and to perform some

Christian Virtues JJ

exterior act of charity in his favour, and do not
cease to act thus until you have entirely rooted
out of yourself this feeling of aversion and
dislike.

6. When One has offended or been offended. — If
anyone has offended you, or if you have offended
anyone, do not wait for him to seek you out, but
bear in mind that our Lord said : " If thou bringest
thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that
thy brother hath aught against thee, leave there
thy gift before the altar, and go and be reconciled
to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift "
(S. Matt. v. 23, 24). Therefore, in order to obey
these words of the Saviour, as also in honour of
Him Who is always the first to seek us out, of Him
Who overwhelms us with all kinds of favours, and
Who receives from us in return all kinds of insults,
seek out him whom you have offended, or who has
offended you, in order to reconcile yourself with
him, preparing to speak to him with the greatest
gentleness, calmness, and humility.

7. During Conversations. — If in your presence a
conversation is held to the disadvantage of others,
change the subject if possible, discreetly and gently,
endeavouring to do so in such a way as not to give
an opportunity for more evil speaking ; for, in that
case, it would be better to keep silence and to
content oneself with paying no attention and with
showing no pleasure in what is said.

8. Towards the Poor and Suffering. — Pray our
Lord to imprint in your heart an especially tender
charity and affection for the poor, and for strangers,
widows, and orphans.

Consider these persons as being recommended
to you by your greatest friend, by Jesus, Who
does, in fact, recommend them to you in the Holy

yS The Reign of Jesus

Scriptures very frequently, very urgently, and as
His other selves. With this idea, speak to them
gently, treat them charitably, and give them all
the help you can.

XV. Of Charity, and of Zeal for the
Salvation of Souls.

Above all, have a special love for the souls of all
men, but particularly of those who are related to
you, or who are dependent on you, striving to
procure their salvation in every way which is
possible to you ; for S. Paul declares : " He who
cares not for his own, especially those of his own
family, hath abjured the Faith, and is worse than
an infidel " (i Tim. v. 8). Bear in mind that these
souls have cost the labour and sufferings of thirty-
three years, the Blood and the Life of a God, and
that the greatest and the most divine work you
can do in this world, and the most pleasing to
Jesus, is to labour with Him for the salvation of
the souls which are so dear and so precious to
Him. Offer yourself to Him, therefore, to labour
at this task in every way He asks of you. Deem
yourself unworthy of being employed in so great
a work, and, nevertheless, when an opportunity
presents itself of helping forward the salvation of
some poor soul (and opportunities will often
present themselves if you look out for them),
never let it pass by. Ask our Lord, first, for
grace to make use of it, then go to work in the
strength which He will give you, with all the care,
the diligence, and the affection possible to you, as
if it were an affair of the greatest importance, as
if all your worldly wealth and even the lives of
everybody in the world were at stake. And do all'

Christian Virtues 79

this for the pure love of Jesus, and in order that
God may be loved and glorified eternally in these
souls, knowing that you should deem it a great
favour and a great blessing to be allowed to spend
all your time, all your health, all your life, and all
the treasure in the world, did you possess it, to
advance the salvation of one single soul for whom
Jesus Christ shed all His Blood, and spent all His
time, His life, and His strength.

O Jesus, Shepherd 01 souls and Lover of the
salvation of mankind, imprint, I beseech Thee, the
sentiments and dispositions of Thy zeal, and of Thy
most ardent love of souls, in the hearts of all Chris-
tians.

XVI. Of True Christian Devotion.

Alter what has been said of the Christian virtues
it is easy to understand what true Christian devo-
tion is, and in what it consists. For if all the
Christian virtues are no other than the virtues of
Jesus Christ, which He practised while He was on
earth, and which we should continue to practise
while we are in this world, it necessarily follows
that true Christian devotion is no other than the
holy and divine devotion of Jesus Christ, which
we should continue and complete in ourselves.
Now —

1. The devotion of Jesus Christ consisted in
accomplishing most perfectly the Will of His
Father and in finding His content in doing so.

It consisted also in serving His Father, and
even in serving mankind for the love of His
Father, inasmuch as He willed to take upon Him
the form, and the mean and lowly station of a
servant, in order to render greater homage and

80 The Reign of Jesus

greater honour to the supreme greatness of His
Father by this abasement of Himself.

2. His devotion consisted in loving and glorify-
ing His Father, and in causing Him to be loved
and glorified in the world ; in performing all His
actions for the glory and love of His Father ; and
in performing them with the most holy, most pure,
and most divine dispositions — that is to say, with
deep humility, with a most ardent love for man-
kind, with a most perfect detachment from Him-
self and from all things, with a close cleaving to
His Father and perfect union with Him, with an
entire submission to His Father's good pleasure,
with joy and content.

3. Lastly, His devotion consisted in immolating
and sacrificing Himself wholly to the glory of
His Father ; in being willing to accept the character
of Host and Victim ; in being willing, in this
character, to endure all kind of contempt, humilia-
tion, privation, and mortifications, exterior and
interior; and, lastly, in suffering a cruel and
shameful death, for the glory of His Father.

It is, as it were, a threefold solemn pro-
fession or vow which Jesus made, at the moment
of His Incarnation, and which He accomplished
most perfectly throughout His life and at the
moment of death.

1. At the moment of His Incarnation He made
profession of obedience to His Father — that is to
say, He made profession never to do His own Will,
but to obey most perfectly the Will of His Father,
and to find therein all His felicity and joy, as we
have already said.

2. He made profession of servitude to His
Father. It is the character which His Father
imposes on Him, saying by the mouth of a prophet :

Christian Virtues 81

" Servus meus es tu, Israel, quia in te gloriabor "
(Isa. xlix. 3). It is the character He assumes
Himself, " Formam servi accipiens " (Phil. ii. 7),
abasing Himself to a humble condition of life, to a
state of subjection to His creatures, enduring even
shame and the cruel and humiliating sacrifice of the
Cross, for love of us, and for the glory of His Father.
3. He made profession of being Host and
Victim, consecrated and immolated to the glory
of His Father, from the first moment of His Life
to the last.

In this consists the devotion of Jesus. And
this is why, as Christian devotion is no other than
the devotion of Jesus, our devotion should also
consist of these same things. To this end, we
should link ourselves to Jesus in a union very
close and intimate, and consecrate to Him all our
life, all our habits, and all our actions.

This is the solemn vow, and the public, chief,
and principal profession which we make at our
Baptism, in presence of the whole Church. For
then — to speak the language of S. Augustine, of
S. Thomas, and of the Catechism of the Council
of Trent — we make a solemn vow and profession
to renounce Satan and all his works, to cleave to
Jesus Christ as members to their Head, to yield
ourselves up, and to consecrate ourselves wholly, to
Him, and to dwell in Him. Now, to make pro-
fession of cleaving to Jesus Christ and of dwelling
in Him, is to make profession of cleaving to His
devotion, to His dispositions and intentions, to
His laws and counsels, to His mind and conduct,
to His life, to His qualities and virtues, and to all
He did and suffered.

This is the reason that, in making a vow and
profession to cleave to Jesus Christ and to dwell

6

82 The Reign of Jesus

in Him — " which is the greatest of all our vows/'
says S. Augustine (" votum maximum nostrum ")
— we, too, make a threefold profession or vow,
which is most holy and divine, and which we
should often consider.

i. We make profession, with Jesus Christ, never
to do our own will, but to submit to the Will of
God, and to obey all sorts of people, in what is
not opposed to God, and to find in doing so our
content and our paradise.

2. We make profession of servitude to God,
and to His Son Jesus Christ, and even to all the
members of Jesus Christ, according to this saying
of S. Paul : " Nos servos vestros per Jesum "
(2 Cor. iv. 5). And in consequence of this pro-
fession, no Christian has anything of his own, any
more than servants have, and has no right to
make use, either of himself, or of the members
and movements of his body, or of the faculties of
his mind, or of his life, or of his time, or of the
wealth he may possess, save for Jesus Christ and
for the members of Jesus Christ.

3. We make profession of being Hosts and
Victims sacrificed continually to the glory of God ;
" spirituales hostias," says the Prince of the
Apostles (1 Pet. ii. 5) ; " Obsecro vos, fratres, per
misericordiam Dei, ut exhibeatis corpora vestra
hostiam viventem, sanctam, Deo placentem,"
says S. Paul — " I beseech you, brethren, by the
mercy of God, offer yourselves a living sacrifice,
holy, acceptable unto God " (Rom. xii. 1). And
what is here said of our bodies applies also to our
souls. This is why we are obliged to glorify and
love God with all the powers of our body and of
our soul ; to cause Him to be loved and glorified
as far as we can ; and in all things to seek only His

Christian Virtues 83

glory and His love ; to live in such a way that
our whole life shall be a continual sacrifice of
praise and love for Him ; and to be ready always,
to be immolated, spent, and annihilated for His
glory.

In a word : " Christianismus est professio vitae
Christ i," says S. Gregory of Nyssa — " Christianity
is the profession of the life of Jesus Christ.' • And
S. Bernard assures us that our Lord does not
place amongst the professed of His religion those
who do not live His life : " Non inter suos deputat
professores, quos vitae suae ceruit desertores."

It is for this reason that —

1. We make profession of Jesus Christ at holy
Baptism — that is to say, we make profession of
the life of Jesus Christ, of the devotion of Jesus
Christ, of His dispositions and intentions, of His
virtues, of His perfect detachment from all things.

2. We profess to believe firmly all He teaches
us, whether in His own Person, or by His Church,
and rather to die than to abjure in the smallest
point this belief.

3. We make profession of waging with Him a
mortal warfare against Sin ; of living in a continual
spirit of prayer as He lived ; of bearing His Cross ;
of continuing the practice of His humility, of His
trust in God, of His submission and obedience,
of His charity, of His zeal for the glory of God
and the salvation of souls, and of all His other
virtues.

4. Lastly, we profess to live, both on earth and
in Heaven, only in order to belong to Jesus, to love
and honour Him in all the states and mysteries of
His life, and in all He is — in Himself and outside
Himself ; and to be always ready to endure all
kinds of tortures, and to die a thousand deaths, if

84 The Reign of Jesus

that were possible, for His pure love and for His
glory.

That is the vow and profession which all Chris-
tians make at their Baptism. In this consists true
Christian devotion, and all other devotion, if there
can be any other, is but deception and perdition.

XVII. The Practice of Christian Devotion.

In order to enter upon the practice of this holy
devotion :

(1) Adore Jesus in His perfect devotion and
in this profession which He made to His Father
at the moment of His Incarnation, and which He
observed most perfectly all His life.

(2) Praise Him for the glory He rendered to His
Father by this means.

(3) Ask His forgiveness for the offences you have
committed against the vow and profession which
you made at your Baptism ; implore Him in His
great mercy to atone for them.

(4) Consider in the presence of God the great obli-
gations which are attached to this vow and to this
profession.

(5) Renew often in yourself the desire to acquit
yourself of them.

(6) Beg Jesus to give you grace to do so, and to
establish in you His most holy devotion.

In the practices indicated above and in all you
do and suffer, be careful to unite yourself to the
devotion of Jesus in this way :

" O Jesus, I offer myself to Thee to perform this
action, or to bear this affliction, in union with the
devotion with which Thou didst perform all Thine
actions and bear all Thy sorrows/'

In acting thus, you will live in a true and perfect

Christian Virtues 85

devotion, by means of which you will form Jesus in
yourself, according to the desire of the Apostle :
" Donee formetur Christus in vobis " (Gal. iv. 19).
You will be transformed into Jesus, according to
the saying of the same Apostle : "In eamdem
imaginem transformamur (2 Cor. iii. 18). That
is to say, you will cause Jesus to live and reign in
you ; you will be one with Jesus, and Jesus will
be wholly in you, according to the sacred words :
" Consummati in unum, et omnia in omnibus "
(S. John xvii. 23). And this is the aim and the
end towards which tend Christian life, Christian
piety, and Christian devotion. This is why it is
necessary to make you see of what importance is
this great work of the forming of Jesus in our souls,
and what you must do in order to accomplish it.

XVIII. Of the Forming of Jesus in Us.

The mystery of mysteries and the highest of all
works is the forming of Jesus, which is indicated
by these words of S. Paul : " Filioli, quos iterum
parturio, donee formetur Christus in vobis "
(Gal. iv. 19). It is the greatest mystery, and the
greatest work which is done, either in Heaven or
on earth, by the most excellent Persons of earth or
Heaven— that is to say, by the eternal Father, by
the Son, and by the Holy Spirit, by the Blessed
Virgin, and by the holy Church.

1. It is the greatest action which the eternal
Father performs throughout eternity, during which
He is continually occupied in producing His Son
in Himself. And beyond this He effects nothing
more admirable than when He forms Him in the
most pure womb of the Virgin at the moment of
His Incarnation.

86 The Reign of Jesus

2. It is the most excellent work which the Son
of God accomplished on earth, forming Himself in
His blessed Mother and in His Eucharist.

3. It is the most noble work of the Holy Spirit,
Who formed Him in the pure womb of the Virgin,
who, herself, never did, and never will do, anything
of greater worth than when she co-operated in this
divine and marvellous forming of Jesus in herself.

4. It is the holiest and the highest work of the
holy Church, who has no employment more noble
than to form Him, by the mouth of her priests, in
the divine Eucharist, and to form Him in the hearts
of her children. She has no other aim in all her
functions than that of forming Jesus in the souls of
Christians.

5. It should, therefore, be our desire, our study,
our chief occupation, to form Jesus in ourselves —
that is to say, to cause Him to live and reign in
us, and to cause to live and reign in us His Spirit,
His devotion, His virtues, His feelings, His inclina-
tions, and His dispositions. It is to this end that
all our exercises of devotion should tend. It is
the work which God has put into our hands in order
that we may labour at it unceasingly.

Two most powerful reasons should impel us to
labour untiringly in order to accomplish this task :

I. In order that the great desire of the eternal
Father, to see His Son living and reigning in us, may
be fulfilled. For, since His Son sacrificed Himself
for His glory and for love of us, He wills that, as
the reward of this sacrifice, His Son shall be
established Ruler of all things. He so loves this
Son, so love-worthy, that He wills to see only Him
in all things, and to have no other object of delight
and love. This is why He wills Him to be all in
all things, " omnia in omnibus " (1 Cor. xv. 26),

Christian Virtues 87

so that He may see and love Him alone in all
things.

2. In order that Jesus, being formed and estab-
lished in us, should, in us, love and glorify worthily
His eternal Father and Himself, according to these
words of S. Peter : "Ut in omnibus honorificetur
Deus, per Jesum Christum " — "That in all things
God may be honoured by Jesus Christ" (S. Pet.
iv. 11) — He alone being capable of loving and glori-
fying worthily His eternal Father and Himself.

These two reasons should kindle in us an ardent
desire to form and establish Jesus in ourselves,
and to seek out all the means likely to advance this
end ; I propose to suggest to you a few such means.

XIX. What we should do to form Jesus
in Ourselves.

We have four things to do in order to form Jesus
in ourselves :

1. We should strive to see Him in everything,
and to have no other object in all our exercises of
devotion, and in all our actions, than Jesus, and the
realizing of His life, mysteries, virtues, and actions.
For He is all in all things : He is the Existence of
all things which exist, the Life of all things which
live, the Beauty of all things beautiful, the Strength
of the strong, the Wisdom of the wise, the Virtue
of the virtuous, the Holiness of the holy. Besides,
there is hardly a single action that we perform, but
He has done a similar one while He was on earth,
and these actions of His we should consider and
imitate in performing ours. By this means we shall
fill our understanding full of Jesus, and we shall
form and establish Him in our mind by thus often
thinking of Him and looking to Him in all things.

88 The Reign of Jesus

2. We should form Jesus, not only in our mind
by thinking of Him, and looking to Him in all
things, but also in our hearts by the frequent
exercise of His divine love. To this end, we
should accustom ourselves frequently to raise our
hearts to Him in love, according to the different
practices which you find in this book ; we should
perform all our actions for pure love of Him, and
consecrate to Him all the affections of our heart.

3. We must form Jesus in ourselves by a com-
plete renunciation of ourselves and all that is in
us. For if we desire that Jesus should live and
reign perfectly in us, we must destroy and annihilate
all created things in our mind and heart, and neither
see, nor love, them in themselves, but in Jesus, and
Jesus in them. We must look upon the world,
and all it contains, as non-existent for us, and
realize that, for us, there is only Jesus in the world,
and that we have to be content, to see, and to love
but Him alone.

We must also labour to destroy our own selves —
that is to say, our own senses, our own will, our
self-love, our pride and vanity, all our evil habits,
all the desires and instincts of our depraved nature.
For as there is nothing in us which is not degraded
and corrupted by Sin, and which, consequently, is
not opposed to Jesus Christ, and which is not in
opposition to His glory and to His love ; it is,
therefore, necessary that all in us be destroyed and
consumed, in order that Jesus Christ may live and
reign in us perfectly.

This is the chief foundation, the first principle,
and the first step in the Christian life. This is
what is called in Holy Scripture, and in the writings
of the holy Fathers, losing oneself, dying to one-
self, perishing to oneself, renouncing oneself. It

Christian Virtues 89

should be one of our chief cares, one of the chief
exercises to which we should devote ourselves by
the practice of abnegation, humility, and mortifi-
cation, interior and exterior, and one of the most
powerful of the means we should employ to form
and establish Jesus in ourselves.

4. But because this great work of the forming
of Jesus in us is immeasurably beyond our strength,
the fourth and principal means is to have recourse
to the help of the divine Grace, and to the prayers
of the Blessed Virigin and of the Saints.

Let us often beg the Blessed Virgin, all the
Angels and Saints, to aid us by their prayers. Let
us offer ourselves to the power of the eternal
Father, to the love He has for His Son, praying
Him to annihilate us completely, and to make His
Son to live and reign in us.

Let us offer ourselves also to the Holy Spirit
with the same intention and the same prayer.

Let us lay down ourselves, and all that is in us,
at the feet of Jesus ; let us implore Him, by that
great love which impelled Him to sacrifice Himself,
to use His divine power in order to annihilate us
and to establish Himself in us, saying to Him for
this purpose :

" 0 good Jesus, I adore Thee in Thy divine
abasement which is shown us by these words of
the Apostle : ' Exinanivit semetipsum ' (Phil. ii. 7).
I adore Thy great and infinite love for Thy
Father and for us, which sacrificed Thee thus. 1
give and abandon myself wholly to the power of
this divine love, so that I may be totally con-
sumed by it. O most powerful, and most kind
Jesus, use Thy power and Thine infinite goodness
to annihilate me, to establish Thyself in me, and
to destroy in me my self-love, my will, my

90 The Reign of Jesus

pride, and all my passions, feelings, and inclina-
tions, in order to establish and to cause to reign
in me Thy holy love, Thy adorable Will, Thy
deep humility, and all Thy virtues, feelings, and
inclinations.

" Destroy also in my heart all attachment to
created things, and annihilate me also in the
esteem and in the heart of all created beings ; put
Thyself both in their place and in mine, so that
being thus established in all things, we may see
nothing, esteem nothing, desire nothing, seek
nothing, and love nothing, save Thee alone ; that
we may talk of nothing but Thee, that we may do
nothing save for Thee ; and that, by these means,
thou mayst be all and do all, and that Thou mayst
love and glorify Thy Father and Thyself, in us and
for us, with a love and a glory worthy of Him and
of Thee/'

XX. Of the Good Use we should make of
Spiritual Consolations.

The life which the Son of God led on earth
included two different conditions of being : a
condition of consolation and enjoyment, and a
condition of affliction and suffering. He enjoyed,
in the superior part of His Soul, the plenitude of all
divine delight and content ; He suffered, in the
inferior part of His Soul, all kind of bitterness and
torture. In the same way, the life of His servants
and of His members — being, as we have seen, a
continuation and a copy of His — is always a life
of mingled joy and sadness, of consolation and
affliction.

And as the Son of God made an all-divine use
of these two different states, and glorified His

Christian Virtues 91

Father in an equal degree in the one and in the
other, so we, also, should strive to make a holy use
of both states, and, in both, to render to God all
the glory He requires of us, so that we may be able
to say with the holy King David : " I will bless
and glorify the Lord at all times ; His praise shall
ever be in my mouth " (Ps. xxxiii. 2).

This is why we place here the use which should
be made of spiritual consolations, that we may be
faithful to God, and glorify Him, both in times of
joy and in times of sadness.

As for the first case, those who treat of this
matter teach us that we should not pay much
heed to consolations, of whatever kind they may
be, whether interior or exterior. Nor should we
desire them, nor ask for them, when we have not
got them, nor fear to lose them when we have them,
nor esteem ourselves above others in having
beautiful thoughts, keen devotional feelings and
affections, tenderness, tears, and suchlike, for we
are not in this world to enjoy, but to suffer — the
state of enjoyment being reserved for Heaven,
and the state of suffering assigned to earth, in
homage to the sufferings which the God of earth
and Heaven endured while He was on it.

When, however, it pleases God to give us consola-
tions, we must not reject or despise them lest we
be guilty of pride and presumption ; but from
whatever side they come to us, whether from God,
or from Nature, or from elsewhere, we should take
care to make good use of them, and to make all
serve for the glory of God, in this way :

1. We should humble ourselves before God,
acknowledging ourselves most unworthy of any
grace or consolation, and think that He is treating
us like weak and imperfect creatures, like little

92 The Reign of Jesus

children who cannot yet eat solid meat, nor stand
alone on their feet, but whom one is obliged to
feed with milk, and carry in one's arms lest they
should fall and injure themselves.

2. We must not allow our self-love to delight
in these spiritual consolations, nor our mind to
repose, or to rely, on them ; but we should refer
them to their source, and give them back to
Him Who gave them to us — that is to say, refer
them to God, and give them back to Him Who
is the source of all consolation, and Who alone
is worthy to enjoy. Let us protest to Him that
we desire no other contentment but His, and that,
aided by His Grace, we are prepared to serve Him
eternally for love of Him alone, without seeking or
claiming any consolation or reward.

3. We must place all the good thoughts,
feelings, and consolations which come to us in
the hands of our Lord Jesus Christ, and pray
Him, Himself to make that use of them which He
would have us make for His glory. We must,
besides, ourselves make use of them for the
glory of God as an incentive to love more fervently,
and serve with more courage and faithfulness, Him
Who deals with us so gently and so lovingly after
we have deserved again and again to be stripped of
His Grace and entirely forsaken by Him.

XXI. Of the Holy Use we should make of
Spiritual Dryness and Affliction.

All the life of Jesus Christ, our Lord, our Father,
and our Head, having been filled with labour,
bitterness, and suffering, both exterior and
interior, it is not reasonable that His children and
His members should follow another road than

Christian Virtues 93

that which He followed. He does us a great
favour, and we have no cause of complaint when
He gives us what He accepted for Himself, and
when He renders us worthy of drinking with Him,
the chalice which His Father gave Him with so
much love, and which He offers to us with an
equal love. It is in this way that He proves the
more His love for us, and gives us a sure sign that
our little services are pleasing to Him. Thus do
you not hear His Apostles proclaim that " all those
who will live piously and holily in Jesus Christ shall
suffer persecution " ; and the Angel Raphael, who
says to the holy man Tobias : " Because thou wast
pleasing to God, it was necessary (note well this
phrase) that thou shouldst be tried by tempta-
tion and affliction. " Words wholly divine, which
teach us that true piety and devotion are always
accompanied by some trial or affliction, coming
either from the world or the devil, or even from
God, Who seems sometimes to withdraw Himself
from souls who love Him, in order to test and prove
their faithfulness.

Do not, therefore, deceive yourself by imagining
that there is nothing but roses and delight in the
paths of God. You will find in them thorns and
labour ; but whatever may happen always love
our Lord faithfully, and His love will change the
gall into honey and the bitterness into sweetness.
Do better still : take the resolution of finding your
paradise and all your content, so long as life shall
last, in the crosses and troubles, as in the means
by which you may the most glorify God and prove
your love for Him ; and as the thing in which
Jesus, your Father, your Spouse, your Head,
found His joy and His paradise while He was
on earth, for the Holy Spirit calls the day of

94 The Reign of Jesus

His Passion " the day of the joy of His Heart "
(Cant. hi. n).

Such is the use you should make of all kinds of
afflictions, bodily and spiritual. This is how you
should act :

1. Adore Our Lord and unite Yourself to Him. — -
Adore Jesus in the sufferings, the privations, the
humiliations, the troubles, the sadness, and the
desertion which He endured in His holy Soul, as
we see by these words : " My Soul is full of sorrow ;
now is My Soul sorrowful ; My Soul is sorrowful
even unto death." Adore the dispositions of His
divine Soul in this condition, and the good use
He made of it for the glory of His Father. Offer
yourself to Him, that He may make you share these
same dispositions and give you grace to make the
good use of your troubles, which He made of His.
Offer your troubles to Him in honour of His.
Pray Him to unite them with His, to bless and
sanctify them by His, to supply what is lacking in
you, and to make of them, in your stead, the use He
made of His, for the glory of His Father.

2. Humble Yourself. — Do not waste time in
seeking for the particular cause of the state in
which you find yourself, nor in examining your
conscience ; but humble yourself at the sight of
your faults and infidelities in general, and adore the
divine justice — offering yourself to God to bear
all the trouble it shall please Him to inflict in
homage to His justice, even esteeming yourself
unworthy that He should deign to exercise justice
on you. For we ought to realize that, on account of
the least of our sins, we deserve to be entirely
forsaken by God. And when we are in such a state
of dryness and distaste for the things of God that
we can hardly think of God, or pray to Him, except

Christian Virtues 95

with a thousand wandering thoughts, we should
remember that we are most unworthy of any grace
or consolation ; that our Lord does us a great
favour in permitting the earth to bear us ; and that
we have many times deserved to become like the
damned, who throughout eternity can have no
thought of God, but thoughts of blasphemy and
abhorrence. It is in this way that we should
humble ourselves before God when we are in this
condition.

3. Rejoice in Jesus. — Take care not to allow
yourself to grow sad or discouraged, but rather
rejoice ; and this for three reasons :

(1) That Jesus is still Jesus — that is to say,
still God, still great and admirable, still in the same
state of glory, of joy, and of content, and that
nothing is able to diminish this joy and this felicity,
"Scitote quoniam Dominus ipse est Deus" — "Know
that the Lord He is God "(Ps. xcix. 2), and then say :

" O Jesus, it is enough for me to know that
Thou art still Jesus ! O Jesus, be for ever Jesus,
and I shall be always content whatever may happen
to me !"

(2} Rejoice that Jesus is your God, that He is
wholly yours, and that you belong to so good and
loving a Saviour, remembering what the royal
Prophet says : " Beatus populus, cujus Dominus
Deus ejus " — " Blessed is the people whose God
is the Lord " (Ps. cxliii. 15).

(3) Rejoice in knowing that it is in this state
that you can serve our Lord most disinterestedly,
and prove to Him that you love Him really for His
own sake, and not on account of the consolations
He formerly gave you. And in order to prove to
Him the faithfulness and disinterestedness of your
love, be careful to perform all your actions and

96 The Reign of Jesus

your usual devotional exercises with all the per-
fection of which you are capable — and all the more
because you feel yourself to be cold, slack, and
deficient — having the more recourse to Him Who
is your Strength and your All. Oifer yourself to
Him more earnestly, raise your thoughts to Him
more frequently ; do not cease to make frequent
Acts of Love for Him, caring nothing if you do not
make them with your usual fervour and satis-
faction. For what matters it whether you be
content or not, provided your Jesus be content ?
And very often what we do in this state of spiritual
dryness and desolation, pleases Him more — pro-
vided we try to do it with the single-minded
intention of honouring Him — than what we do
with a strong feeling of fervour and devotion ;
because this latter state is generally tainted by
self-love, whereas the former is more free from it.
Lastly, do not be discouraged on account of the
offences and negligences of which you may be
guilty while you are in this state, but humble
yourself in the presence of our Lord, pray Him
to atone for them in His great mercy, and be
confident that in His goodness He will do so.
Above all be courageous and resolved, always, no
matter what may happen, to serve Him and to
love Him perfectly, to be faithful to Him to your
last breath, trusting ever in Him, being assured
that in His great goodness He will give you the
grace you need, notwithstanding all your in-
fidelities.

Christian Virtues 97

XXII. That the Perfection and Consummation
of Christian Life and Holiness is Martyr-
dom ; in what Martyrdom consists.

The Excellence of Martyrdom. — The crown, the
perfection, and the consummation of the Christian
life is martyrdom. This is the greatest miracle
which God works in Christians, and it is the
greatest and most marvellous act that Christians
can perform for God. The most signal favour that
Jesus Christ confers on those He especially loves
is to make them like Him in their life and in their
death, and to render them worthy to die for Him
even as He died for His Father and for us. It is in
the holy martyrs that He shows forth in the highest
degree the marvellous power of His divine love ;
and of all the Saints it is the holy martyrs who are,
in God's sight, the most worthy of admiration.
Thus we see that the greatest Saints of Heaven,
such as S. John Baptist and all the Apostles, are
martyrs. The martyrs are, above all others, the
Saints of Jesus. It is He, Himself, Who thus
calls them, speaking of them by the mouth of His
Church: " Sancti mei "* — " My Saints." For
though all the Saints belong to Jesus, yet the holy
martyrs belong to Him in a special and peculiar
way, because they died for Him. This is why He
shows them a peculiar and extraordinary love.

The Diverse Kinds of Martyrdom. — There are
several sorts of martyrs and martyrdom : —

1. Those are martyrs, in some sort, in the sight
of God who are in a real disposition, and have a
firm will, to die for our Lord, whilst as a matter
of fact they do not die for Him.

* Brev. Rom. Com. Mart., 8 resp.

9 8 The Reign of Jesus

2. " Those are also, in a way, martyrs," says
S. Cyprian, " who are ready to die rather than to
offend Him."

3. To mortify one's flesh and one's passions,
to resist one's unruly appetites, and to persevere
thus to the end for love of our Lord, is a kind of
martyrdom, according to S. Isidore.

4. To bear patiently, for the same reason, the
necessities and distress of poverty, or some other
affliction ; or to endure with humility insults,
calumny, and persecution in order to return good
for evil ; to bless those who curse us, and to love
those who hate us — this is another sort of martyr-
dom, according to S. Gregory.

The Martyrdom of Blood. — However, true and
perfect martyrdom consists, not only in suffering,
but in dying. So that death is of the essence and
nature of perfect and complete martyrdom. This
means that to be truly and perfectly a martyr— in
the sense and in the manner in which holy Church
uses the word — it is necessary to die, and to die
for Jesus Christ.

It is, however, true, that if anyone performs an
action for the love of our Lord, or suffers some
trouble, which in the ordinary course of things
would cause his death, but should be preserved by
an extraordinary and miraculous exercise of the
power of God ; even though he should live for a
long time afterwards, and die at last a common
and ordinary death ; nevertheless God, Who de-
livered him miraculously from the death he was
prepared to suffer for His sake, will not withhold
from him the crown of martyrdom, provided that
he persevere to the end in His grace and love.
Witness S. John the Evangelist, S. Thecla — the
first of her sex to suffer martyrdom for Jesus

Christian Virtues 99

Christ — S. Felix, a priest of Nola, and others,
whom the Church honours as true martyrs, though
they did not die by the hands of tyrants, nor of
the tortures they endured for our Lord, but lived
for a long time after, and died a common and
ordinary death, having been preserved from the
death they were ready to suffer for Jesus Christ,
by an extraordinary intervention of divine power.

The Martyrdom of Love. — With this exception — •
that is to say, except in the case of such a miracle
preventing the fatal effect — to be really a martyr,
it is necessary to die, and to die for Jesus Christ.
To die lor Jesus Christ means to die either for His
Person ; or in order to maintain the honour of
some one of His Mysteries or Sacraments ; or for
the defence of the Church ; or in support of some
truth He taught, or of some virtue He practised
or else in avoiding some sin for the reason that it
is displeasing to Him ; or in loving Him so ardently
that the sacred force of His divine love causes
death ; or in performing some action for His glory.

For the Angelic Doctor assures us that any
action— even a human and natural one — provided
that it conduces to the glory of God and is done
for love of Him, may make us martyrs, and does
in fact make us martyrs, if it prove to be the
cause of our death.*

It is for this reason that I advise and exhort you
to be veiy careful to raise your heart to Jesus at
the beginning of your actions, in order to offer
them to Him ; and to protest to Him that you
desire to do them for His love and for His glory.
For instance, if the spiritual or corporal aid you
give a sick person, occasions an illness which
causes your death, and if you have really per-
* S. Thomas Aquinas 2. 2. 124, 5 ad 3.

ioo The Reign of Jesus

formed this action for love of our Lord, you will
be considered by Him as a martyr, and you will
share the glory of the holy martyrs in Heaven.
All the more is this so if you love Him so deeply,
so ardently, that the strength and power of
this sacred love consumes and destroys in you
the physical life ; for this death is the highest
and holiest of all kinds of martyrdom. This is the
martyrdom of the Mother of love, the Blessed
Virgin. It is the martyrdom of S. John the
Evangelist, of S. Mary Magdalene, of S. Teresa,
of S. Catherine of Genoa, and of several other
Saints. It is even the martyrdom of Jesus, Who
died, not only in love and for love, but also of the
excess of love.

XXIII. That all Christians should be
Martyrs, and live in the Spirit of a
Martyr ; what this Spirit is.

All Christians, whatever their calling or position,
should be ever prepared to suffer martyrdom for
Jesus Christ our Lord ; and they are called upon to
live in the disposition and spirit of martyrdom for
several reasons.

i. Because they belong to Jesus Christ in a
variety of ways; for this reason, as they should
live for Him, so they are also bound to die for
Him, according to the holy words of S. Paul :
" No man liveth to himself, and no man dieth to
himself. For whether we live, we live unto the
Lord ; whether we die, we die unto the Lord.
Whether we live, therefore, or whether we die,
we are the Lord's. For this reason Jesus Christ
died and rose again, that He might reign over the
living and the dead " (Rom. xiv. 7-10).

Christian Virtues 101

2. Because God, having given us our life and our
being, solely for His glory, we are bound to glorify
Him in the most perfect way possible — i.e., by
sacrificing to Him our life and our being, in homage
to His life and His supreme Being, and thus
protest to Him that He alone is worthy to be and
to live, and that all other lives should be immolated
and annihilated in presence of His sovereign and
immortal life.

3. God commands us to love Him with all our
heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength —
that is to say, with the most perfect love of which
we are capable. Now, to love Him in this way, we
should love Him to the point of shedding our blood,
and giving our life for Him. For it is in this that
the supreme degree of love consists, because our
Lord says : " Greater love hath no man than this,
that a man lay down his life for his friends "
(S. John xv. 13).

4. Our Lord Jesus had, from the moment of His
Incarnation, a burning thirst and an ardent desire
to shed His Blood and to die, for the glory of His
Father and for love of us. He could not, however,
at once gratify this desire in Himself, because the
time appointed by His Father was not yet come,
so He chose the Holy Innocents in order to satisfy
this desire, and die, as it were, in their persons.
In the same way, since His Resurrection and His
Ascension into Heaven, He has always retained
this same desire of suffering and of dying for the
glory of His Father and for our sake ; but as He
can no longer suffer and die in His own Person,
He wills to do so in His members, and He seeks
those in whom He can gratify this desire. For this
reason, if we have any zeal for the accomplishment
of the desires and plans of Jesus, we should offer

102 The Reign ot Jesus

ourselves to Him so that He may assuage in us — if
one may so speak — this ardent thirst, and that
He may satisfy this strong desire which He has, of
shedding His Blood, and of dying, for the love of
His Father.

5. We made profession at our Baptism, as we
have already seen, of cleaving to Jesus Christ, of
following and of imitating Him, and, in consequence,
of being hosts and victims consecrated and sacri-
ficed to His glory. This profession obliges us to
follow and imitate Him in His death as well as in
His life, and to be always ready to sacrifice
our life to Him.

6. Jesus Christ being our Head and we being His
members, we should live His life and die His
death ; for it is evident that the members should
live the life and die the death of their Head,
according to the sacred words of S. Paul : " We
bear about in our body the death of Jesus, and we
are continually given up to death for Jesus in
order that the life of Jesus may be manifested
in our mortal flesh " (2 Cor. iv. 10, 11).

7. But above all the most powerful and urgent
reason for our being martyrs, is the martyrdom of
blood and most painful death which Jesus Christ
our Lord suffered on the Cross for our sake.

For this most love-worthy Saviour was not
satisfied to spend all His life for our good ; but
He willed also to die for our sake, and He did, in
fact, die by the most cruel and ignominious death
which ever was, or ever will be. He sacrificed a
life of which one single minute is worth more
than all the lives of men and Angels, and He would
be ready, if need were, to die again a thousand
times. And, as a matter of fact, He is continually
on our altars as Host and Victim. There He is

Christian Virtues J03

still immolated, and will be, every day and every
hour, till the Day of Judgment, as often as the
divine Sacrifice of the Altar, bloodless and painless,
shall be celebrated, in order to show us that
He is ready, if need were, to be sacrificed as
many times for our sake in a bloody and
painful sacrifice such as the sacrifice of the
Cross.

Oh ! what goodness ! what love ! I marvel
not that hundreds, thousands, hundreds of
thousands of martyrs, have shed their blood and
given their life for Jesus Christ. For this same
Jesus Christ having died for all men, certainly all
men ought to die for Him. I am not surprised
that the holy martyrs, and all those whom Jesus
makes to know and feel the holy ardour of this
divine love which nailed Him to a Cross, have an
ardent thirst, and a burning desire, of suffering and
dying for His sake. I am not surprised that many
have, in fact, suffered atrocious tortures, and that
with such joy and content that the tormentors were
sooner tired of torturing them, than they of suffer-
ing ; and that their most cruel torments seemed
nothing to them, in view of the insatiable desire
they had of suffering for Jesus Christ. But I do
marvel to see us now so cold towards such a loving
Saviour ; so loath to endure the least suffering ; so
much attached to a life so miserable and pitiful as
that of earth ; and so far from wishing to sacrifice
it for Him Who sacrificed a life so holy and so
precious for us. How can we call ourselves
Christians and adore a God crucified, dying on a
Cross ; a God yielding up for us a life so noble and
excellent ; a God Who sacrifices Himself for us
every day before our eyes on our altars ; and not
be ready to sacrifice for Him all we have of dearest

104 The Reign of Jesus

in the world — even our life, which already belongs
to Him of right ? Assuredly we are no true
Christians if we have not this disposition. This is
why I say that it is evident to anyone who will
consider well the foregoing truths, that all
Christians should be martyrs, if not in deed, at
least in will.

And this is so true, that, if they are not martyrs
of Jesus Christ, they will be martyrs of Satan.
Choose which of the two you prefer. If you live
under the tyranny of Sin, you will be martyrs to
your self-love and to your passions, and conse-
quently martyrs of the Devil. But if you desire
to be martyrs of Jesus Christ, you must try to
live in the spirit of martyrdom.

The Spirit of Martyrdom. — What is the spirit of
martyrdom ? It is a spirit which has five excellent
characteristics :

i. It is a spirit of strength and constancy,
which cannot be shaken or vanquished, either by
promises or by threats, by gentleness or by harsh-
ness, and which fears nothing but God and sin.

2. It is a spirit of deep humility which holds the
vainglory of the world in horror, and which loves
scorn and contempt.

3. It is a spirit of distrust of self, and of con-
fident trust in our Lord Jesus, as one Who is our
strength, and by Whose grace we can do all
things.

4. It is a spirit of most perfect detachment from
the world, and from all that is in the world. For
those who have to sacrifice their life to God should
also sacrifice to Him all other things.

5. It is a spirit of ardent love for our Lord
Jesus Christ, which impels those who are animated
by it to do all and to suffer all for love of Him,

Christian Virtues 105

Who did all and suffered all for them ; love which
so inflames and consumes them that they seek and
desire mortification and suffering as a paradise,
while, on the other hand, they flee from, and hold
in horror, the pleasures and delights of this world
as a hell.

Such is the spirit of martyrdom. Pray our
Lord, Who is the King of martyrs, to fill you with
this spirit. Pray the Queen of martyrs, and all the
martyrs also, to obtain for you this spirit from the
Son of God by their holy prayers. Have, a special
devotion for all the holy martyrs. Be careful also
to pray to God for all those who are destined to
suffer martyrdom, that He may give them the
grace and spirit of martyrdom.

Lastly, strive to imprint in yourself by imitation
a perfect image of the life of the holy martyrs ;
still more, of the life of the King and of the Queen
of martyrs — that is to say, of Jesus and of Mary —
so that they may make you worthy of resembling
them in their death.

Prayer to Jesus as King of Martyrs.

O most love-worthy Jesus, prostrate at Thy
feet, conscious of the depth of our misery, in
union with all the humility, devotion, and love of
Heaven and earth ; we adore Thee, we bless Thee,
we glorify Thee, as the chief and supreme Martyr
of Thy Father, and as the King of all martyrs.

We honour and revere Thee in the most bloody
martyrdom which Thou sufferedst in Thy Cross
and Passion.

We adore and bless Thee in the most painful
martyrdom endured by Thy blessed Mother at
the foot of the Cross, when her holy soul was

106 The Reign of Jesus

pierced by the sword of suffering ; when she endured,
in her Mother's heart, the same martyrdom which
Thou enduredst in Thy sacred Body.

We praise and glorify Thee also in the diverse
martyrdoms of Thy Saints, who have endured so
many and so great tortures for love of Thee.

We give Thee eternal thanks for the great glory
which Thou hast rendered to Thy Father by the
martyrdom which Thou hast endured in Thine
own Person, in Thy blessed Mother, and in Thy
Saints. We offer Thee all the love, all the glory
and praise, which Thou hast received from Thy
blessed Mother, and from the Saints, by their
martyrdom. Oh, what joy for us is in the thought
of the infinite glory Thou hast rendered to Thine
eternal Father by Thy sufferings and Thy death,
and which Thy Father has, in His turn, rendered
Thee, because of the torments and death which
Thou hast endured for Him and for us ! Oh, what
consolation do we find in seeing Thee so loved and
glorified in Thy Saints and Martyrs, and in seeing
them so glorified and loved by Thee !

O Jesus, Strength and Love of martyrs, we
adore and bless eternally all the thoughts, the
purposes, and the infinite love that Thou hast had
from all eternity, with regard to all the martyrs
who have served Thee in Thy Church from the
beginning, and who shall serve Thee, till the end of
the world. Blessed be Thou for ever, O most
sweet Jesus, for all the marvels Thou hast worked,
and wilt work in them, and by them.

Prayer for the Desire of Martyrdom.

O most sweet Jesus, Thou Thyself mayest no
more either suffer or die, nevertheless Thou hast

Christian Virtues 107

still an exceeding great desire of suffering and of
death, to be endured in Thy members, in order
that Thy Father may be glorified by means of
suffering and death, even until the end of the
world. And Thou seekest on all sides victims in
whom to accomplish Thy desire. Behold us,
O good Jesus, we offer ourselves to Thee with all
our heart, deign to make use of us. We present
to Thee our bodies and all the parts of our bodies,
ready, by the aid of Thy grace, to endure all kinds
of torments in order that Thy desire may be
fulfilled, and that the ardent longing Thou hast, to
suffer and to die in Thy members, may be assuaged
in us.

O most adorable Jesus, as Thou hast created us
for Thy glory, grant us to glorify Thee in the most
perfect way, by dying for Thine honour.

O sole object of our love, Thou commandest us
to love Thee with all our heart, with all our soul,
and with all our strength. That is our desire,
Lord ; and to this end would we could shed our
blood and give our life for Thy love. But to desire
is all we can do, unless, in Thy great mercy, Thou
fulfillest the desire it has pleased Thee to give us.

O most sweet Saviour, as Thou art pleased, in
Thine admirable goodness, to be our Head, and
to take us for Thy members, grant us, by this same
goodness, to live the life of our Head, and to die
His death.

It is to this that Thou didst bind us when Thou
madest us members of Thy Body by Holy Baptism,
for we then made solemn promise and profession
to cleave to Thee, to follow Thine example in all
things, and, consequently, in imitation of Thee, to
be victims, destined to be sacrificed for Thy glory.
Give us grace faithfully to fulfil this holy promise

108 The Reign of Jesus

and solemn profession. Grant us to follow Thee
in Thy life and in Thy death, and, as Thou wert
sacrificed, so we may be sacrificed for love of Thee
and for the glory of Thy Father.

Prayer for the Spirit of Martyrdom.

O most good Jesus, by the most ardent love
which caused Thee to die for us on the Cross ; by
the precious Blood which Thou hast shed ; by the
painful death Thou didst endure ; by the great
love Thou bearest to Thy holy Mother, the Queen
of martyrs ; by the love Thou hast for all Thy
holy martyrs, and by the love they have for Thee ;
by all Thou lovest in Heaven and on earth ; we
implore Thee to give us, from henceforth, the spirit
of martyrdom, the grace and dispositions necessary
for martyrdom. Render us strong and full of
constancy, to do and suffer with courage all things
for Thy glory, and to fear naught but Thee and
what is displeasing to Thee. Grant us to lean, not
on our own strength, but to put our whole trust
in Thee and in Thy goodness alone. Make us,
even as we abhor hell, to abhor the glory, vanity,
pleasures, and delights of this world, and to find
our joy and our paradise in contempt, humiliation,
labour, and persecution. Vouchsafe to us to live
in perfect forgetfulness of ourselves, and in detach-
ment from ourselves, from the world, and from all
worldly things. But, above all, grant us to be so
inflamed with the fire of Thy holy love, that we may
burn continually with an ardent desire to love
Thee ever more and more, and to do and suffer
greatly for Thy pure love ; and, finally, grant that
our life may be consumed and destroyed by the
sacred flames of this divine love.

Christian Virtues 109

Implant firmly in us, O good Jesus, these divine
traits of the spirit of martyrdom ; implant them also
in those whom Thou hast chosen, from all eternity,
to place them in the ranks of Thy holy martyrs,
especially in those who are destined to suffer and
die for Thee in the last terrible persecution of
Antichrist.

O Mother of Jesus, Queen of all the martyrs !
O holy martyrs of Jesus ! pray, we beseech you,
this same Jesus, that, by His infinite goodness, He
may accomplish these things in us, for His glory
and for His most pure love.

Lastly, O most love- worthy Jesus, we pray Thee
to grant that, henceforth, we may live a life which
shall be a perfect copy of Thy most holy life, of
the life of Thy blessed Mother, and of the lives of
Thy holy martyrs, so that we may merit to resemble
Thee and them, in death as in life, and to sing
eternally with them and with Thee the hymn of
Thy praise and of Thy divine love.

SECOND PART

PRACTICE OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

Jesus, only Son of God, only Son of Mary, is, to
speak the language of the Apostle, " the Author
and Finisher of the Faith " (Heb. xii. 2), and of
Christian godliness ; or, to use His own words,
"He is Alpha and Omega, the first and the last,
the beginning and the end of all things " (Apoc.
xxii. 13). It is, therefore, but justice that He
should be the beginning and the end of our whole
life — of all our years, of all our months, of all our
weeks, of all our days, and of all our religious
exercises. For this reason, we should have con-
secrated the beginning of our life to Him, if, at that
time, we had had the use of our reason ; and, for the
same reason, we should wish to end our life in His
grace and in the exercise of His love. To obtain of
His goodness such a favour, we should take care to
consecrate to Him, by some pious and loving exer-
cise, the beginning and end of each year, of each
month, of each week, and especially of each day.

EXPLANATION.

These different programmes for each day, each week,
each month, each year, do not cover the same ground.
On the contrary, they complete each other.

The programme for the day regulates our actions — how
they should be performed, with Jesus Christ and for Jesus
Christ. It contains a judicious series of religious exercises
and an admirable method of sanctifying one's ordinary
actions.

in

ii2 The Reign of Jesus

The programme for the week teaches us what is the
sacrifice of praise we should offer to Jesus in the diverse
stages of His life. Properly carried out, it would make
our life a perpetual adoration of Jesus, and, by fixing our
gaze on His Person, it would render easy the exercise of
the presence of Jesus.

The law of Christian vigilance has inspired the monthly
programme. The Blessed Jean Eudes there offers us
three exercises to maintain us in our original fervour : the
exercise of the praise of Jesus, the exercise of love to
Jesus, and the preparation for death.

Lastly, the programme for the year invites us to
honour in turn the mysteries of Jesus, in the liturgical
order adopted by the Church.

It offers us, in addition, two spiritual exercises — one
for the anniversary of our Baptism and the other for the
annual Retreat.

If anyone wish, as the Blessed Jean Eudes advises, to
make a third renewal of fervour by devoting ten con-
secutive days to preparing himself for death, he has only
to take the series of meditations which we offer for the
monthly Retreat. This exercise might be used during
the Octave for the Dead.

I

WHAT WE SHOULD DO EACH DAY

OUR ACTIONS — BY JESUS CHRIST AND WITH
JESUS CHRIST

" Whatsoever ye do, whether in word or in act, do all in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks by Him
to God the Father " (Col. iii. 9).

SUMMARY.
Life is Action : In motu vita.

1. The Christian life consists in action: By Jesus
Christ ; with Jesus Christ ; for Jesus Christ. By Jesus
Christ as a principle of action ; with Jesus Christ as support
and as model ; for Jesus Christ as our object.

2. This life is obligatory, and Jesus Christ claims it
of us as His right for many reasons — above all, as our
Redeemer, and as the Sovereign Lord of all things.

3. This life has its conditions : the offering of our
actions to Jesus Christ ; conformity of our intentions and
dispositions to those of Jesus Christ ; renunciation of
ourselves.

4. This life is a continual exercise of the love of Jesus
Christ, and makes of Him the centre of our soul.

5. This life embraces all our actions : awakening in
Jesus Christ; prayer with Jesus Christ; the Sacrifice of
the Mass, as priests and victims, with Jesus Christ ; medi-
tation with Jesus Christ ; the Communion of the Body
and Blood of Jesus Christ ; devotional reading by the
light of Jesus Christ ; Divine Office and Rosary in Jesus
Christ ; ordinary actions like those of Jesus Christ ;
examination of conscience at the feet of Jesus Christ ;
repose in Jesus Christ.

6. This life in Jesus Christ is the life of liberty of the
children of God, saved by the truth of Jesus Christ.

113 «

114 The Reign of Jesus

EXPLANATION.

The fundamental, dominant disposition of our soul
should be this : I propose to continue the life of Jesus
Christ. This disposition should direct our thoughts,
our affections, our feelings, our words, our actions — our
whole line of conduct. It is its function to set in move-
ment all the faculties of our soul, as the weights set in
movement the works of a clock. Thus :

i. We should be careful to renew this disposition
every day when we wake, at our meditation, after
Holy Communion.

2. During the day we should cast a glance at our soul
from time to time and ask ourselves this question :
" Am I at this moment continuing the life of Jesus
Christ ? Are the dispositions of Jesus Christ my dis-
positions ?" Let us renew our dispositions by the heartfelt
cry : " All for Thee, O Jesus, all for love of Thee."

3. At the evening examination of conscience we should
reflect carefully if we have really, during the day, con-
tinued the Life of Jesus. At what time, and in what
circumstances, we have chiefly failed in doing so.

A method such as this will simplify our spiritual life,
and will lead to union with Jesus.

I. Our Actions : Obligation of consecrating
Them to the Glory of Jesus.

All Christians, of whatever calling or position in
life they may be, are obliged, in their character of
members of Jesus Christ, to live the life of their
Head — that is to say, a holy life — and to perform
all their actions, great or small, in a Christian
manner. What is a Christian manner, if not holily
and divinely, and as Jesus Christ performed His —
that is to say, in Jesus Christ and for Jesus Christ,
in the spirit of Jesus Christ, and with His holy and
divine dispositions.

And the reason of this obligation is, that
our whole life, and all which depends thereon,

What We should Do each Day 115

belongs to Jesus Christ for five principal reasons,
each of which comprises many, lesser ones :

1. Because He is our Creator, Who gave us our
being and our life, Who imprinted on our being
and on our life the image and resemblance of His
life and of His Being. For this reason, our being
and life belong to Him absolutely and entirely,
with all their acts, and should be in continual
harmony with Him, as an image corresponds with
its prototype.

2. Because He is our Preserver, Who sustains us
at each instant in the being He has given us, and
Who bears us continually in His arms, with more
care and love than a mother her child.

3. Because, according to the sacred Word, His
Father has given Him from all eternity, gives Him
unceasingly, and will give Him everlastingly, the
whole of creation in general, and each one of us in
particular.

4. Because He is our Redeemer, Who has de-
livered us from the bondage of Satan and of sin ;
Who has bought us at the cost of His Blood and
of His Life ; and Who, consequently, has acquired
a right over all that is in us and which belongs to
us — that is to say, to all our life, to all our time, to
all our thoughts, words, and actions ; to all which
belongs to our body and to our soul, to the use of
our bodily senses and of the faculties of our mind,
as well as to the use we make of all the exterior things
which are in the world. For not only has He earned
for us, by His Blood, all the grace necessary for the
salvation of our soul, but also the right of living
and breathing.

5. Because He has given us all He has and all
He is.

He has given us His Father to be our Father,

ii6 The Reign of Jesus

by making us the children of that same Father,
Whose Son He is.

He has given us His Holy Spirit to be our Spirit,
to teach us, to rule us, and to guide us in all
things.

He has given us His blessed Mother to be our
Mother.

He has given us His Angels and His Saints to be
our protectors and our intercessors.

He has given us all things in Heaven and earth
for our use, and to supply our necessities.

He has given us His own Person in His Incarna-
tion.

He has given us His whole life, for He employed
every moment of it for us ; He had not a single
thought, nor spoke a single word, nor did one
action, nor took one step, but He devoted it to our
salvation.*

Lastly, He has given us, in the Holy Eucharist,
His Body, His Blood, His Soul, His Divinity, to-
gether with all the marvels and all the infinite
treasures contained in His Divinity and in His

* " These are our treasures, which He has given us,
having won them for us with His blood : His own sacred
Humanity, Body and Soul, His Childhood, Hidden Life,
Ministry, Passion, Blessed Sacrament and Session at the
Father's Right Hand ; His Mother, all she is or has ;
His countless Angels, beautiful and strong ; all the good
works and penances of earth ; all the Masses that are
said ; and the countless sufferings of those in purgatory ;
the graces which the lost had, and did not correspond to ;
the sanctity of the Saints : Joseph, the Baptist, the
Apostles, and the rest ; all the praise of birds and beasts
and the orderly elements ; all that possible creatures could
do ; God's past mercies, through the Old Testament
history downwards ; and the love which the Three Divine
Persons bear to each other, and the incommunicable love
wherewith God loves Himself eternally." (Faber, " All
for Jesus," chap, v., i.)

What We should Do each Day 117

Humanity ; and this every day, or, at least, as
often as we choose to prepare ourselves to receive
Him. If this be so, what obligation are we under
to give ourselves wholly to Him— to offer and con-
secrate to Him all our movements and all the
actions of our life ! Surely, if we had the lives of
all the Angels, and of all the men who have been,
are, and will be, we ought to spend them in His
service, even had He only devoted one minute of
His life to us ; for one minute of His life is worth
a thousand eternities, if I may so speak, of the lives
of Angels and men. Under what an obligation
are we, then, to consecrate and devote to His
service and to His glory, the short life and the brief
time that we have to spend on earth !

II. Our Actions : Manner of sanctifying

Them.

In order to sanctify our actions, several con-
ditions are necessary.

1. State of Grace. — The first and chief condition
is to keep ourselves carefully in the grace and
friendship of Jesus, dreading and fleeing from all
that might cause us to forfeit them — that is to say,
from sin, which should be in our eyes more horrible
than death and the most frightful tortures. If, there-
fore, you unhappily fall into some sin, raise your-
self at once by means of contrition and confession.

2. Oblation of Ones Actions. — Offer yourself to
our Lord every morning, and offer Him also, all the
actions of the day with the intention of performing
them for His glory. Our Lord assured S. Gertrude
that the offering she made Him of all her actions,
even the smallest, of every breath and of every
heart -beat, was most pleasing to Him. By virtue

1 1 8 The Reign of Jesus

of this oblation, each step you take, each breath
you draw, each pulsation of your heart, each act
of your senses, both exterior and interior, and, in
fact, all you do, except what is wrong, will belong
to Jesus, and will be so many acts redounding to
His greater glory.

3. Oblation of the Praise of the Saints. — Offer to
Jesus all the love and glory which will be rendered
Him that day in Heaven and earth. Unite your-
self to all the praise which He will receive that
day from His eternal Father, from Himself, from
His Holy Spirit, from His blessed Mother, from all
the Angels, from all the Saints, and from all His
creatures. In this way you will be associated with
all the love and praise which will be continually
rendered to him during all that day.

4. Union with the Divinity and with the Saints. —
Pray all the Angels, all the Saints, the Blessed
Virgin, the Holy Spirit, and the Eternal Father,
to glorify and love Jesus for you during that
day, and they will assuredly do so ; for it is
the most pleasing prayer which can be ad-
dressed to them, and one which they hear and
grant most gladly. And, in this way, you will
have a special share in the love and glory which
Jesus receives continually from the sacred and
divine Trinity, from His holy Mother, and from
the Elect reigning with Him in glory ; and He will
accept this love and this glory as if it were in some
sort offered by you, it being offere'd in your name
and at your entreaty.

5. Union with Jesus. — First thing in the morning,
and often during the day, unite yourself to the
dispositions and intentions which our Lord had
when He performed the same actions. It is not
necessary to be acquainted with these dispositions

What We should Do each Day 119

in detail ; it is sufficient to unite oneself to them
in a general way. The light of Faith does, however,
allow us to perceive that the dispositions of our
Lord, in all His actions, were dispositions of
humility, of gentleness, of patience, of love to
mankind, of attachment to God, and of every other
virtue. His intention was to do them all for love of
His Father, in order to glorify Him, to do His good
pleasure, to accomplish His divine Will.

6. Acceptation of Trouble.— It is a good thing to
make, every morning, an act of acceptation of all
the troubles and annoyances which may come to
you during the day ; likewise an act of renuncia-
tion of all the temptations of the Devil, of all
feelings of self-love, and of the other passions, which
may assail you during the day. These two acts
are important, for there come to us every day a
thousand small annoyances, which are but transi-
tory, and which one is not careful to offer to God ;
this is the case, too, with many temptations, and
with many feelings of pride and self-love, which,
almost unnoticed, influence our actions.

Now, by virtue of the first act, God will be glori-
fied in all the troubles, whether of mind or of body,
which you will have to bear during the day, because
you have accepted them beforehand for love of Him.
By virtue of the second act, He will give you the
strength to resist temptation with greater ease,
and to destroy more easily the effects of pride and
of the other passions.

7. After committing a Fault. — If you fall into some
sin, do not be discouraged, even if it happens
several times ; but humble yourself before God in
your heart, and, if the place allow of it, kneel down
and ask His forgiveness. Make an act of contri-
tion, and implore our Lord Jesus Christ to make

120 The Reign of Jesus

reparation for your fault, to grant you a renewal
of His grace, to give you fresh strength to prevent
your falling again into sin, and, at the same time,
to imprint again in your soul the resolution rather
to die, than deliberately to offend Him.

III. Our Actions : How Jesus becomes, by the
Habit of sanctifying our Actions, the
Centre of our Life.

The first, the chief — we may even say the only —
object of the love and delight of the Eternal Father
is His Son Jesus. I say the only object, for the
divine Father has willed that His Son Jesus should
be " all in all things," and that " all things should
subsist in Him and for Him/' according to the
saying of His Apostle. This is why He sees and
loves all things in Him, and Him alone in all things.
And, according to the same Apostle, " He hath
created all things in Him and by Him, and it is
for Him that they were created. He hath placed
in Him all the treasures of His knowledge and
wisdom," His goodness and beauty, His glory and
all His other divine perfections. He has also Him-
self solemnly revealed to us several times that
" This is His beloved Son, in Whom He is well
pleased."

In imitation of this Heavenly Father, Whom we
should follow and imitate as our Father, Jesus
should be the one and only object of our mind and
heart. We should see and love all things in Him,
and we should see and love nothing but Him in all
things. We should perform all our actions in Him
and for Him. We should find all our content and
our paradise in Him. As He is the paradise of the
eternal Father, His Beloved, in Whom He is well

What We should Do each Day 121

pleased, so also His most holy Father has given
Him, and Jesus has given Himself, to us, to be our
paradise. It is for this reason that He orders us
to make our abode in Him : " Manete in me " —
" Abide in Me " (S. John xv. 4). And His beloved
disciple reiterates this commandment twice over :
" Abide in Him, my little children — abide in Him."

Let, therefore, this most love-worthy Saviour
be the one object of your thoughts, of your desires,
of your affections ; the one aim of all your actions ;
your centre, your paradise, your All. Withdraw
into Him as into a place of refuge, by raising your
mind and your heart to Him. Abide ever in Him
- — that is to say, let your mind and your heart, all
your thoughts, all your desires, and all your affec-
tions, be centred in Him ; all your actions done in
Him and for Him.

To act thus is to live in the continual exercise
of love towards our Lord Jesus Christ, and this
exercise can be practised, without trouble or great
application of mind, very easily and calmly.

As a proof of what I assert, I may say truthfully,
that I know an ecclesiastic (may his name be
written in the Book of Life !) who, by the frequent
use of this exercise, has reached such a point,
that it is easy to him, even while taking his
meals, to make nearly as many acts of love to
Jesus as he puts morsels in his mouth. And he
does this, not only without any great application
of mind, without difficulty, or inconvenience to his
health, but with ease and pleasure such, that it
does not prevent his talking and enjoying himself
decorously out of love for his neighbour when he
finds himself in the society of other people.* I do

* It is evident that the ecclesiastic in question is no
other than the Blessed Jean Eudes himself — as, indeed,

122 The Reign of Jesus

not say this in order to oblige you to do the same,
for people would exclaim at once that I require
things which are too difficult ; but that you may
know how strong a holy habit is, and how wrong
the world is, in imagining a thousand difficulties
and annoyances, where there is nothing but sweet-
ness and delight.

IV. Our Actions, and Ejaculatory Prayer.

This devout habit of referring all one's actions
to our Lord is also an exercise of the presence of
God. Be careful, nevertheless, to call to mind
from time to time that you are in the presence of
God, and even in God ; that our Lord Jesus Christ
in His Divinity encircles you on all sides ; that He
penetrates and fills you to such a degree as to be
more in you than you are in yourself ; that He
thinks continually of you, and that He has ever
His eyes and His heart turned towards you.
Let this induce you to think of Him, if not continu-
ally, yet not, at least, to let an hour go by without
raising your mind and your heart to Him by some
one of the following ejaculations, or by other similar
ones with which it shall please His divine Spirit
to inspire you :

O Jesus ! O good Jesus ! O Possessor of my
heart ! O Beloved of my soul !

Father Herambourg states positively (" Vertus du
Venerable Pdre Eudes," p. 55). A missionary of La
Delivrande — Father Sauvage, deceased January 29,
1904 — also had this precious habit. Having become blind
towards the end of his life, and forgetting that he might
be overheard, he repeated incessantly devout invocations.
For instance, when going upstairs, he would say at each
step : " Good Jesus, I love Thee ;" and at each morsel of
food he swallowed : " Good Jesus, I love Thee."

What We should Do each Day 123

0 Object of my love ! when shall I love Thee
perfectly ?

0 my divine Sun ! enlighten the darkness of my
mind ; melt the ice of my heart.

0 Light of mine eyes ! grant me to know Thee,
and to know myself, that I may love Thee and hate
myself.

0 my radiant Light ! grant me to see clearly
that all which is not Thee is but nothingness,
deception, and vanity.

O my God and my All ! separate me from all that
is not Thee, and unite me wholly to Thee.

O my All, be All to me, that all things else may
be nothing !

0 my Jesus, be my Jesus !

0 Life of my soul, 0 King of my heart, live and
reign in me wholly !

Blessed be Jesus, blessed be the King of my
heart, blessed be the Life of my life, let Him be
for ever loved and glorified in all and by all !

0 Fire divine, 0 Fire immense, Who art every-
where ! 0 consuming and devouring Fire, why
dost Thou not consume me wholly in Thy sacred
flames ?

O Fire, 0 heavenly Flame, kindle me, change me
wholly, into a pure flame of love to Jesus !

0 Jesus, Thou art all fire, all flame of love for
me ! Oh, why am I not all flame, all fire of love
for Thee ?

0 Jesus, Thou art all mine ; may I be wholly
and for ever Thine !

Ah, God of my heart ! Ah, Heritage of my soul,
what do I desire in Heaven or on earth save Thee ?

O unum necessarium ! Unum quaero, unum de-
sidero, unum volo, unum mihi est necessarium,
Jesus meus et omnia ! 0 one Thing needful ! It is

124 The Reign of Jesus

Thou Whom I seek, it is Thou Whom I desire, it
is Thou Whom I need, it is Thou alone, O my
Jesus, Who art all to me !

Veni, Domine Jesus ! Come, O Lord Jesus-
come into my heart and my soul, that Thou mayest
love Thyself in them perfectly !

Alas, Jesus ! when will there be nothing left in
me opposed to Thy divine Love ?

O Mother of Jesus, show that thou art the
Mother of Jesus by forming Him, and causing Him
to live, in my soul !

O Mother of Love, love thy Son for me !

O good Jesus, repay Thyself an hundredfold the
lifelong love which I and all Thy creatures owe
Thee !

O Jesus, I offer Thee all the love which is in
Heaven and earth !

O Jesus, I give Thee my heart ; fill it with Thy
holy love !

O Jesus, may all my steps render homage to the
steps Thou didst take on earth !

O Jesus, may all my thoughts be consecrated in
honour of Thy holy thoughts !

O Jesus, may all my words do honour to Thy
holy words !

O Jesus, may all my actions give glory to Thy
divine actions !

O my Glory, may I be sacrificed wholly to Thy
glory throughout eternity !

O my All, I renounce all that is not Thee, and I
give myself to Thee for ever !

" I wish for naught, and yet desire I all ;
Jesus is All, without Him all is naught ;
Take from me all, give me this only Good,
I shall have All, altho' not having aught."

What We should Do each Day 125

V. Our Actions : Rising.

It is a very important thing to begin each day
holily, by giving to God one's first thoughts,
words, and acts, and by consecrating to Him the
first use one makes of one's eyes, one's heart, one's
tongue, and one's hands.

1. The First Thought. — As soon, therefore, as
you are awake, raise your eyes to Heaven, and your
heart to Jesus, thus consecrating to Him the first
use you make of your senses, the first thought of
your mind, the first affection of your heart.

2. The First Word. — Let your first words be the
holy Names of Jesus and of Mary : Jesus, Maria — ■
O Jesus ! O Mary, Mother of Jesus !

O good Jesus, I give Thee my heart for ever !

O Mary, Mother of Jesus, I give thee my heart,
that thou mayst give it to thy Son !

Veni, Domine Jesu ! Come, Lord Jesus — come
into my mind and my heart, that Thou mayst fill
and possess them wholly !

O Jesus, be to me Jesus !

3. The First' Action. — Let your first act be the
sign of the Cross : " In the Name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost "; and offer
yourself, with all your heart, to Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit, that you may be wholly theirs.

4. Rising. — When the hour for rising comes,
think of the great love with which the Son of God,
at the moment of His Incarnation, came out from
the bosom of His Father — the abode of delight, of
repose, and of glory— and came down to earth in
order to subject Himself to our misery and to bear
our griefs and our infirmities. In order to do
honour, and to unite yourself, to this divine love,
rise promptly and bravely from your bed,

126 The Reign of Jesus

saying : " Surgam, et quaeram, quern diligit anima
mea " — " I will arise and seek the Beloved of my
soul." Utter these words in union with all the love
of which Jesus is the object in Heaven and on earth.

5. On your Knees. — Then prostrate yourself in
adoration of this same Jesus : " Adoramus te,
Domine Jesu, et benedicimus tibi, et diligimus te
ex toto corde nostro, ex tota anima nostra, et ex
totis viribus nostris " — " We adore Thee, O Lord
Jesus ; we bless Thee and we love Thee, with all
our heart, with all our soul, and with all our
strength." Pronounce these words in the name
of all creation, and offer all the acts of humility,
devotion, and love, of Heaven and earth.

6. While Dressing. — In order to prevent the
Devil from putting into your mind evil or idle
thoughts, try and occupy yourself with some pious
reflection. Reflect that our Lord Jesus Christ,
by His Incarnation, took upon Himself, for love
of us, our human and mortal nature, with all the
wretchedness, and all the needs to which it subjects
us — that, therefore, He, like us, needed clothing.
Raise, therefore, your heart to Him, and say :
" O Jesus, be Thou for ever praised and exalted, in
that Thou hast deigned to put on our humanity
and to cover Thy body with clothing like ours."

Or else think of those unfortunates who have
not wherewith to clothe themselves, and say to
our Lord :

" O my God, deign, I beseech Thee, to provide
for the necessities of the poor ; give to them cloth-
ing, but deign also to clothe both them and me with
Thyself, with Thy Spirit, with Thy love, with Thy
gentleness, with Thy loving-kindness, with Thy
patience, with Thine obedience, and with all Thy
other virtues.

What We should Do each Day 127

VI. Our Actions : Prayer and Meditation.

As soon as one is dressed, the first and most
important thing we have to do, is kneel down before
some image of our Lord or of the Blessed Virgin,
or simply before our Lord Himself, Who, in His
Divinity, is everywhere, and Who is more present
where we are, than we are ourselves. Give at
least a quarter of an hour as the firstfruits of the
twenty-four hours of the day, to Him Who has
given you all your life. Adore and thank Him,
offer yourself to Him, and consecrate all the actions
of your day to Him, with the intention of doing
them all for His glory.

Here are a few rules which you will do well to
follow, in order that your prayer and meditation
may be pleasing to God and profitable to your soul :

1. Before beginning your Prayer or Meditation. —
(1) Consider with the eye of Faith the infinite
majesty of God, Who is everywhere present ; Who
fills all things ; in Whom we are more immersed
than are the fish in the sea ; and Who is more in us
than we are in ourselves, according to these words
of S. Augustine : " Intimo meo intimior." Adore
Him with all your heart, and humble yourself to
the earth before Him, acknowledging that you are
infinitely unworthy to appear before His Face, to
think of Him, that He should think of you, or even
that He should suffer you in His Presence.

(2) Protest to Him that you desire to perform
this action solely for His glory and for His content.

(3) Set aside yourself, your own intelligence,
and your self-love, and give yourself to our Lord
Jesus Christ, that He may unite your prayer,
with the prayer He continually addresses to

128 The Reign of Jesus

His Father, and with the prayers which are con-
tinually offered in Heaven and earth, especially
those of the Blessed Virgin, of your Guardian
Angel, and of those Saints for whom you have
a special devotion ; pray these Saints to make
you a sharer in the fervour with which they
pray.

(4) Give your mind and your heart to our Lord,
and pray Him to take possession of them and to
guide them in your prayer in accordance with His
holy Will, and to put into your mind the thoughts,
and into your heart the affections, most pleasing
to Him.

2. At the End of your Prayer or Meditation. —
(1) Thank God for the graces He has accorded
you ; ask His forgiveness for your negligences ;
beg our Lord to supply all that is lacking in
you, and to be, Himself, your continual prayer
before His Father.

(2) Gather up the principal thoughts and affec-
tions which God has given you, in order to think
over them during the day. It is also useful, in
order to remind you of them, to choose some text
of Holy Scripture which you may use as an ejacu-
latory prayer during the day.

(3) Take care not to trust to your own pious
thoughts and good resolutions, but to the mercy of
God alone. Place in the hands of our Lord the
good thoughts and resolutions He has given you
during your prayer or meditation, that He may
strengthen them, and give you grace to put them
into practice ; offer them also to the Blessed Virgin
with the same intention.

(4) Implore the Blessed Virgin, your Guardian
Angel, your patron Saints, and all the Saints and
Angels, to continue your prayer for you by associ-

What We should Do each Day 129

ating you with the prayer which they unceasingly
offer to God.

(5) Consider the sins into which you are in the
habit of falling, and try to foresee the opportunities
of committing them which are likely to occur that
day, also the particular virtues which you will be
called upon to practise. Try to foresee also the
obligations of your calling and position in life, the
evil you can prevent, and the good you can do for
the glory of God and the salvation of souls, in
order that you may reflect on the best means of
doing it.

Above all, in everything, do not forget to beg
for the help of God's Grace.*

VII. Our Actions : Hearing Mass.

In order to hear Mass holily and to glorify God
worthily in this most Holy Sacrifice, you have four
things to do :

1. As soon as you leave your house to go to
Mass, you should be possessed by this thought :
that you are not only going to be present at, or to
witness, but that you are going to perform an
action which is the most holy and divine, the
greatest and most important, the highest and most
admirable action, which can be performed in
Heaven or earth ; and that, consequently, it should
be performed holily and divinely — that is to say,
with dispositions which are altogether holy and
divine, with great care and attention of mind and
heart, as beseems an affair of the highest conse-
quence. I say that you are going to perform this action,
for all Christians, being one with Jesus Christ, Who

* " (Euvres Completes," vol. iii., 54.

130 The Reign of Jesus

is the great High Priest, and being thus par-
takers of His divine Priesthood, have not only
the right of being present at the Holy Sacrifice,
but also of doing with the priest what he does —
that is to say, of offering, in union with him and with
Jesus Christ Himself, the Sacrifice which is offered
to God on the altar.

2. On entering the church, you should humble
yourself in your heart, esteeming yourself most
unworthy to enter the House of God, to appear
before His Face, and to participate in so great a
mystery, which comprises in itself all the mys-
teries and all the marvels of Heaven and earth.
At the beginning of Mass, you should enter into a
spirit of penitence, humiliation, and contrition at
the sight of your nothingness and of your sins,
accuse yourself of them in general with the priest,
ask pardon of God, and beg Him to give you a
perfect repentance.

3. After having adored our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who offers Himself to us on the altar in order to
receive the homage and worship which are His due,
beseech Him that, as He changes the gross and
earthly nature of the Bread and Wine into His
Body and Blood, so He may change and transform
the heaviness, coldness, and dryness of your heart —
so carnal and arid — into the ardour, tenderness,
and spirituality of the holy affections and of the
divine dispositions of His Sacred Heart. Then
remind yourself that Christians are one with Jesus
Christ, as members are one with their head ; and that,
this being so, they partake of His double character
of Priest and of Victim. Consequently, when they
assist at Mass, they should do so as Priests, to offer
with Jesus Christ, the great High Priest, the
Sacrifice which He offers ; and as Victims, to be

What We should Do each Day 131

immolated and sacrificed with this same Jesus
Christ to the glory of God.

Thus, as you participate in the divine Priest-
hood of Jesus Christ, and as, in your character
of Christian, and member of Jesus Christ, you
possess the name and dignity of priest ; you
should exercise this dignity, and make use of the
right which it gives you, of presenting to God, with
the priest, and with Jesus Christ Himself, the Sacri-
fice of His Body and Blood, which is offered at
Holy Mass, and of offering it to Him, as far as
possible, with the same dispositions with which it
is offered to Him by Jesus Christ. Oh, with what
holy and divine dispositions is it offered to Him by
His Son Jesus ! Oh, with what humility, with what
purity and holiness, with what detachment from
Himself and from all things, with what attachment
of His mind to God, with what charity for mankind,
with what love for His Father ! Unite yourself, by
desire and intention, to these dispositions of Jesus ;
pray Him to imprint them in you, so that you may
offer this divine Sacrifice with Him, and with His
dispositions.

Unite yourself also to the intentions with which
He offers it, which consist of five principal ones :

The first is, to honour His Father, and to render
Him a glory and a love worthy of Him.

The second, to offer Him a thanksgiving worthy
of His goodness, for all the good He has ever done
to all creatures.

The third, to atone fully for all the sins of the
world.

The fourth, for the fulfilment of all His purposes
and intentions.

The fifth, to obtain from Him all things neces-
sary for all men, both for their soul and their body.

132 The Reign of Jesus

In accordance with these intentions of Jesus
Christ, you should, therefore, offer to God the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass : —

(1) In honour of the most Holy Trinity ; in
honour of all that Jesus Christ is in Himself, and
in all His conditions, mysteries, qualities, virtues,
actions, and sufferings ; in honour of all He does
and operates, in mercy or in justice, in His blessed
Mother, in all the Angels and Saints, in His Church
— triumphant, militant, and suffering — and in all
creatures, in Heaven, on earth, and in hell.

(2) As a thanksgiving to God for all the graces,
temporal and eternal, which He has ever conferred
on the Sacred Humanity of His Son, on the
Blessed Virgin, on all the Angels, on all men, on
all creatures, and especially on yourself.

(3) As an atonement to His divine justice for all
your sins, for the sins of the whole world, and par-
ticularly for those of the poor souls in Purgatory.

(4) For the accomplishment of all His designs
and purposes, especially of those which concern
you.

(5) To obtain of His goodness all the grace which
is necessary, to you, and to all men, in order that He
may be served and honoured by all, in the degree
of perfection which He requires from each one.

This is what you should do in your character
of priest. But besides this, in your character
of host, you are under the obligation, when you
offer Jesus Christ, of offering yourself as victim
with Him, or, rather, of praying Jesus Christ
to come into your heart and to draw you to
Him, to unite Himself to you, and to unite and
incorporate you to Him in His character of Host, in
order to sacrifice you with Him to the glory of His
Father. And, because the victim which is sacrificed,

What We should Do each Day t 33

must be put to death, and then consumed by fire,
pray Him to make you die to yourself — that is to
say, to your passions, to your self-love, to all that
is displeasing to Him ; to consume you in the
sacred fire of His divine Love, and to grant that
all your future life may be a perpetual sacrifice of
praise, glory, and love to His Father and to Him.

4. You should prepare yourself to communicate
— if not sacramentally, at least spiritually. For
you should consider that our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who loves you with an infinite love, does not
become present in this Sacrifice only in order to
be with you, to converse familiarly with you, and
to confer on you His gifts and graces ; but — what
is much better — He desires to come into you ; He
has a great longing to make His dwelling in your
heart, and to give Himself to you by a Communion,
sacramental or spiritual. This is why you should
prepare to receive Him at all events spiritually,
and to this end, enter into the same dispositions
which you should have in communicating sacra-
mentally— i.e., dispositions and sentiments of
humility and love. Humble yourself, therefore,
before Him, deeming yourself most unworthy to
receive Him. But, nevertheless, as He desires it
so much, desire also, on your side, to receive Him ;
and invite Him, by many acts of love, to come into
your heart, and to live and reign in it perfectly.

5. Lastly, after having thanked our Lord for
the grace He has conferred on you in the Mass,
withdraw with the firm resolution of employing
the day in His service, and with the thought that
you should henceforth be a host, at once dead
and living : dead to all which is not God ; living
in God and for God, wholly consecrated and sacri-
ficed to the glory and love of God. Protest to our

1 34 The Reign of Jesus

Lord that you desire that it should be thus, and
offer yourself to Him to do and suffer all He
pleases. Pray Him, in His mercy, to accomplish
His Will in you ; to give you grace to raise your
heart often to Him during the day ; to do nothing
that is not for His glory ; ask Him to let you die
rather than offend Him, and to give you His most
holy benediction.

This is the use you should make of an action
so holy and so divine as is the most holy Sacrifice
of the Mass. If you do not need so many thoughts
to occupy your mind holily during Mass, choose
those which are most pleasing to you.

Here are a few short invocations which will be most
useful to you :

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, I adore Thee through
our Lord Jesus Christ, present on this altar.

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, I thank Thee for all
Thy benefits through our Lord Jesus Christ, present on this
altar.

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, I ask forgiveness of
my sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, present on this altar.

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, I pray that Thy holy
Will may be done, through our Lord Jesus Christ, present
on this altar.

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, I ask Thy grace for
myself and for those I love through our Lord Jesus Christ,
present on this altar.

VIII. Our Actions : Holy Communion.

i. Preparation for Holy Communion. — In the
Holy Eucharist our Lord comes to us, with an
infinite humility, which causes Him to abase Him-
self and to take the form and appearance of bread
in order that He may give Himself to us. He
comes with an ardent love, which impels Him to
give us, in this Sacrament, all He possesses which

What We should Do each Day 135

is most high, most dear, and most precious. We
should therefore draw near to Him, and receive
Him, with very deep humility and very great love.
These are the two chief dispositions for receiving the
Holy Communion. You should, therefore, make Acts
oi humility and love with as much fervour as possible .

It is also most useful to desire to have the
devotion and the love of all holy souls. Our Lord
said one day to S. Mechtilde, a daughter of S. Bene-
dict, that if, when she was about to communicate,
she felt in herself no devotion, she should desire
to have the devotion and love of all the holy souls
who have ever communicated, and that, in His
eyes, it would be the same as if she, herself, had
these dispositions.

It is said of S. Gertrude, who lived at the same
time, and in the same convent, that one day, when
on the point of communicating, she did not feel
in herself the preparation and the devotion she
desired. So she betook herself to our Lord and
offered to Him the preparation and the devotion
of all the Saints and of the Blessed Virgin. At
once our Lord appeared to her, and spoke these
vords : " At this moment thou appearest before

Ne, and in the eyes of My Saints, adorned with the

ornaments thou desirest."
Ah, Lord, how good Thou art, thus to accept our

goid desires in the place of deeds !

1. Thanksgiving after Commnuion. — After Holy

Conmunion you have three things to do :

(j) You should prostrate yourself in spirit at

the set of the Son of God, dwelling in you, in order

to alore Him, and ask forgiveness for all your

sins <ud ingratitude, especially for having received

Him u a dwelling so unworthy of Him. and with

so Htt? devotion.

136 The Reign of Jesus

(2) You should thank Him for giving Himself
to you, and invite all creatures in heaven and
earth to unite with you in blessing Him.

(3) As He has given Himself to you, so you, too,
should give yourself wholly to Him.

IX. Our Actions : Devotional Reading.

Amongst the pious exercises which may he p
souls to advance in the paths of divine Love,
one of the most excellent is the reading of
good books. For this reason I advise and ex-
hort you, as far as I may, never to let a
single day go by without reading some good
book for at least half an hour. In order to do
this reading well, bear in mind what is related
of the Son of God in the fourth chapter of the
Gospel of S. Luke, how, having entered a syna-
gogue one Sabbath day, He took a book and read.
Therefore —

1. Offer Him your reading in honour of His.

2. Raise your mind to God in order to protest
to Him that you desire to do this action for love
of Him, and to ask Him for light and grace to cb
it well.

3. During your reading also, raise your mild
to God, and make Acts of faith, hope, confident,
humility, and hatred of sin. Offer yourself to
God, and make resolutions to avoid such and sich
sin, and to practise such and such virtue.

4. If it is the life of a Saint that you are readng,
be careful to —

(1) Praise God for the glory He has rencered
to Himself, and for the favours He has dae to
His Church by means of this Saint.

(2) Rejoice with the Saint on account 4 the

What We should Do each Day 137

favours he received from God while he was on
earth, of the glory he enjoys in Heaven, and bless
him for all the honour he has rendered to God,
and will render Him eternally.

(3) Humble yourself at seeing yourself so far
from the perfection of life of the Saints, who were,
nevertheless, weak men such as you are yourself.

(4) Conceive a great desire to imitate their
virtues, and implore them to obtain for you the
grace of being associated with the love and glory
which they render to God in heaven.

5. At the end of your reading give thanks to
God for the light and for the good feelings which
He has given you, and pray Him to implant them
deeply on your mind and heart, and to give you
grace to profit by them in the way He requires
of you.

Dispositions Necessary for the Reading of Holy
Scripture. — 1. Adore our Lord in His holy Word,
in this way : " O Jesus, I adore Thee as the eternal
Word of the Father, and as the source of all the
holy words which are in this book ; I adore Thee
in all the purposes which Thou hadst with regard
to the whole Church, and with regard to me, in
uttering them, or in inspiring them in the sacred
writers."

2. Thank our Lord for having given us so
precious a treasure and so priceless a relic of
Himself as His holy Word, and also for the light
He has, by its means, communicated to His Church.

3. Humble yourself ; recognize that you are
unworthy to read, even to touch, or to look at, the
sacred books ; ask pardon for your negligence in
reading them, for the bad use that has been made
of them, and for the lack of respect with which
they have been treated.

138 The Reign of Jesus

Be careful to venerate the holy Books as you
venerate the Heart of God, which contains His
secrets and which is the source of life to His children.

4. Offer yourself to the divine Spirit Who
inspired the Holy Scriptures, and implore Him
to engrave them in your heart, to make of your
soul and body a gospel, a living book, in which
the life of Jesus is perfectly printed.*

X. Our Actions : The Recitation of the
Office.

Whether the Office be the Divine Office obliga-
tory for priests, or the little Office of the Blessed
Virgin in use amongst pious persons, the rules are
the same.

The chief reason why we are often tormented
by wandering, idle, or extravagant thoughts
during our vocal prayers is that our mind insists
always on being busy with some thought, good or
bad. For this reason, in order that bad or idle
thoughts may obtain no access to our mind we
should, on beginning our prayer, be careful to
give, with all our strength, our mind, and our
heart to Jesus, so that He may take entire posses-
sion of them. On our side, too, we should strive
to accustom ourselves to filling our soul with
good thoughts and holy affections, taking care
not to allow ourselves to perform so holy an action
negligently and imperfectly, as a matter of custom
and routine, rather than as an act of piety and
devotion.

With this purpose, in beginning the Office,
reflect that you are going to accomplish one of
the highest and most important actions which

* " CEuvres Completes," vol. iii.

What We should Do each Day 139

you can do or which can be done in heaven or
earth — an action so great and so lofty that not
only is it, and will it eternally be, the occupation
of the millions of Angels and Saints who are in
Heaven, and of the Queen of Angels and Saints,
the Blessed Virgin ; but it is also the occupation,
from all eternity, of the three divine Persons of
the ever Blessed Trinity, who are continually en-
gaged in praising, blessing, and glorifying each
other. It is an action most holy and divine —
and therefore called the Divine Office — and which
should, consequently, be performed holily and
divinely — that is to say, with holy and divine
dispositions.

Then, considering the grandeur and sacredness
of this action, and acknowledging that you have,
of yourself, no worthiness or capacity of perform-
ing it holily, but that all which is in you, and of
you, is in opposition to it, and that you are even
unworthy to appear in God's presence and to
present yourself before a Majesty so lofty ; humble
yourself at the feet of God ; give yourself to Jesus,
and pray Him to annihilate you, and to establish
Himself in you, in order Himself to perform this
action in your stead, and to praise and glorify His
Father and Himself in you, He alone being worthy
to do so.

Give yourself to the zealous love with which
He unceasingly praises His Father, in Heaven, on
earth, in hell, and in all the universe. For, properly
speaking, it is Jesus alone Who praises and glorifies
His Father in the entire universe.

He praises and glorifies Him eternally in Heaven,
in Himself and in His holy Mother, in His Angels
and in His Saints.

He praises and blesses Him unceasingly on

140 The Reign of Jesus

earth : in Himself, in the Blessed Sacrament of
the altar — where He exists in a continual state of
praise and adoration towards His Father — and in
all the holy souls who praise God on earth, whether
in public or in private.

He praises and glorifies Him in hell, where He
is in His divine Person, "and where He does perpetu-
ally for His Father, what He does for Him in
Heaven.

Lastly He praises and exalts Him unceasingly
throughout the world, which is entirely filled with
His Presence and with His divine Majesty, and
with the unceasing praise and blessing which He
offers everywhere to His Father.

Unite yourself to all this praise which Jesus
renders to His Father and to the most Holy Trinity,
in all times and in all places ; and unite yourself
also to the humility, to the attention, to the love,
to the purity, to the holiness, and to all the other
dispositions of Jesus, ceaselessly occupied in His
Father's praise.

Having thus piously prepared yourself for the
performance of an action so holy as the recita-
tion in private, or the celebration in public, of the
Divine Office, you may, by reciting or by cele-
brating it, honour each day, the entire life of Jesus,
in this manner :

When you say the first Nocturn of Matins, offer
it to Jesus in honour of the divine and eternal
life which He enjoyed in the bosom of His Father
from all eternity, before the creation of the world.

The second Nocturn in honour of the life which
He had in the world, from the creation till His
Incarnation.

The third Nocturn, in honour of His life in the
womb of His blessed Mother.

What We should Do each Day 141

Lauds, in honour of His life as a child to the
age of twelve.

Prime, in honour of His hidden and laborious
life which He led till the age of thirty.

Tierce, in honour of His public life, which lasted
from the age of thirty till His death.

Sext, in honour of His Passion, death, and
burial.

None, in honour of His Resurrection, of His
Ascension, and of the glorious life He leads in
Heaven — in Himself, in His blessed Mother, and
in His Saints and Angels.

Vespers, in honour of His life on earth since
the Ascension, in the Holy Eucharist and in His
Church.

Compline, in honour of the empire He enjoys
over all things — in Heaven, in earth, in Purga-
tory, in hell, in the world of nature, of grace, and
of glory, over men, over Angels, and over all
creatures — and, generally, in honour of all fje has
been, is, and will be, in His Divinity and in His
Humanity, and of all He has accomplished and
will accomplish, with regard to His Father, His
Holy Spirit, His Mother, His Angels, His Saints,
and all His creatures.

Now, in saying each part of the Office, you
should apply your mind to consider the part of
the life of Jesus in honour of which you recite it
— that is to say, you should consider what went
on in Jesus during this part of His life — His
thoughts, His purposes, His affections, and His
dispositions. You should consider also the actions
He performed, the virtues He practised, the
thoughts that occupied His mind, with regard to
His Father, Himself, His blessed Mother, His
Angels, and His Saints, and especially the thoughts.

142 The Reign of Jesus

the purposes, the love, He had with regard to you.
Consider also the glory and praise which were
rendered to Him during this part of His life by His
Father, by His Holy Spirit, by His blessed Mother,
by His Angels, and by His Saints.

But notice, that it is not necessary, unless you
desire it, to pause or interrupt the recitation of
your Office in order to occupy your mind with these
reflections ; all this may be done by applying
your mind to these thoughts while you are singing
or reciting the Office. So that, if you have, ever
so little, the habit of these interior exercises, you
will not require any more time for doing the ex-
terior action. On the contrary, the time thus
employed will seem to you very short, so great is
the sweetness and blessedness you will find in this
inner application of your mind and heart to Jesus
— source of all blessing and consolation.

XI. Our Actions : Recitation of the
Rosary.

It is only an extreme blindness, or a prodigious
ignorance of the things of God, which can lead anyone
to doubt that the use of the Rosary of the Blessed
Virgin comes to us from Heaven, and is inspired
by God, seeing : — that it is approved and practised
by the whole Church universal ; that it contains
the most holy prayers it is possible to pronounce —
i.e., the Pater, the Ave, and the Credo ; and that
it is an excellent means of honouring the first
mystery of the life of Jesus and the greatest
marvel ever wrought by God in Heaven or earth —
that is to say, the mystery and marvel of the
Incarnation of the Son of God in the womb of the
Virgin Mary. For this incomparable marvel and

What We should Do each Day 143

admirable mystery, which is the cause of unceasing
joy and rapture in Heaven, should also be un-
ceasingly honoured on earth, because it was on
earth, and for the sake of the inhabitants of earth,
that it was accomplished, and because the Church
militant on earth should follow and imitate the
Church triumphant in Heaven.

Now this mystery of the Incarnation is, in fact,
continually honoured in several ways, but especi-
ally by the Angelas, which is said three times a
day, at the sound of the bell — in the morning, at
noon, and in the evening — and by the use of the
Rosary, which is composed of many Ave Marias.
For as often as we say Ave Maria we celebrate
and honour the memory of this ineffable mystery,
which was announced to the Blessed Virgin, and
operated in her, by means of this divine salutation
of the Archangel S. Gabriel, when he saluted her
from God, and announced to her the advent and
the Incarnation of the Son of God in her, and her
elevation to the sublime dignity of Mother of God.

For this reason — -

1. We cannot too often say the Ave Maria,
because we cannot too often celebrate the memory
of this love-worthy mystery.

2. We cannot too often repeat this salutation,
uttered by command of God and by the mouth of
a Seraph, to the Virgin of Virgins, to the Mother
of God Almighty, and uttered on the day of her
greatness — that is to say, the day on which she
was raised to the most sublime dignity that ever
was, or ever will be, conferred on any being — the
dearest, the most precious day of her life.

3. We cannot say the Ave Maria too often,
because these words are also most pleasing to the
Son of God ; for they recall to Him the first

144 The Reign of Jesus

mystery of His life on earth — the mystery of His
goodness, and of His boundless love for His Father
and for us.

4. We cannot recite too often the Ave Maria,
because these words are most dear, and most
honourable, to the blessed Mother of Jesus, for they
brought to her the best, the most desirable, and
the most glorious news, she could ever hear.

5. We cannot repeat too often the Ave Maria,
because these words are most precious to us ; for
they announce to us the coming of Him Who had
been expected, desired, and prayed for, on the earth,
for five thousand years ; and Who comes into the
world to deliver us from the tyranny of Satan, to
reconcile us with God, and to operate such marvels
for our sake.

For these reasons the use of the Rosary, con-
sisting of this angelic salutation, is most holy, most
agreeable to God, and to the Mother of God. It
should, therefore, be in familiar use with all true
Christians who desire to be pleasing to God and to
His holy Mother.*

XII. Our Actions : Ordinary Actions.

There is no act, or exercise, of virtue in an ordinary
Christian life, but our Lord Jesus Christ performed
a similar one while He was on earth ; and if we
desire to perform our actions holily we must offer

* The Blessed Jean Eudes here exposes at length a
method for saying the Rosary profitably. Had he heard
the urgent entreaties of Leo XIII. that the meditation of
the Fifteen Mysteries should be joined to the recitation
of the Rosary, he would have been the first to carry out
the recommendation of the great Pontiff. It would, there-
fore, be superfluous to describe his own method — beautiful
though it be.

What We should Do each Day 145

them to Him in honour of, and in union with,
His.

This point is of the greatest importance, the
more so that the greater part of our life is taken
up by a continual succession of insignificant
actions — such as eating, drinking, sleeping,
writing ; intercourse with our fellows ; working ;
visiting the poor and the sick ; doing small acts of
charity, obedience, humility, and other virtues;
enduring temptations and afflictions.

If we were careful to perform well all these
actions, we should render great glory to God, and
we should advance rapidly in the paths of His
love. Our negligence is the cause of God's being
deprived of the glory which we owe to Him, and
of our losing many of the graces which He would
give us.

This is why S. Paul desires that, whether we
eat or whether we drink, or whatever we do — no
matter how trivial and insignificant the action
may be — we should do all for the glory of God
and in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. And
what is it to perform one's actions in the Name
of our Lord Jesus Christ ? It is to do them in
the spirit of Jesus Christ, or, to express it in a
different way, with the dispositions and intentions
with which Jesus Christ performed the same
actions while He was on earth, and with which He
would do them if He were in our place.

Further, the zeal which we should have for the
glory of our Lord Jesus Christ should impel us to
offer Him, not only this action, but also all similar
ones which have been, or will be, performed
throughout the whole world, in order to consecrate
them to His glory, together with our own. For
instance, when you are working, consider how

146 The Reign of Jesus

many people are doing the same work without
offering it to God. Offer their work, then, to-
gether with your own, in imitation of Jesus, Who
offered all our actions, in union with His, to His
Heavenly Father.

Be careful, then, at the beginning of all your
actions — at all events of the principal ones — to
raise your heart to Jesus and to protest to Him :

1. That you renounce yourself, your self-love,
and your own dispositions and intentions.

2. That you give yourself to Him, to His holy
love, and to His divine Spirit, and that you desire
to perform all your actions with the same dis-
positions and intentions with which He performed
His. By this means you will procure Him great
glory in all your actions, and you will make much
progress, in a short time, in the way of righteousness.

Here are some ejaculations of which you may
make use at the beginning of each action :

" O Jesus, I renounce myself, my self-love, and
all that belongs to me. I give myself to Thee,
to Thy Holy Spirit, and to Thy divine love, that I
may do this action by Thee, by the guidance of
Thy Spirit, and for Thy pure love. "

Or else :

" O good Jesus, nothing for me, nothing for
my self-love, nothing for the world, but all for
Thee, O my Saviour, all for Thy glory, all for Thy
love."

XIII. Our Actions : the Evening Examination
of Conscience and going to Rest.

Before going to rest you .should spend a few
minutes in examining your conscience. Here are
some suggestions of which you can make use :

What We should Do each Day 147

1. Adore God, and thank Him on your own
behalf and on behalf of all men.

2. Adore our Lord as your Sovereign Judge,
and pray Him to enlighten you that you may see
and detest your faults.

3. Examine yourself on the sins which you
have committed during the day — by thought,
word, and deed, particularly those to which you
are most subject ; those you have committed
against the resolutions you made at your medita-
tion in the morning ; and against humility, obe-
dience, charity, and gentleness.

4. Pray for contrition, and strive to make acts
of contrition.

5. Ask the Blessed Virgin, the Saints and
Angels to obtain for you the forgiveness of your
sins and a true conversion.

6. Offer to God the rest which you are going
to take in honour of, and in union with, the rest
which our Lord and His blessed Mother took on
earth.*

7. Be careful that the last action before you
sleep be the making of the sign of the cross ; that
your last thought be the thought of Jesus ; that
your last prayer be an act of love of Jesus ; that
your last words be the holy Names of Jesus and
Mary, in order that you may merit that your last
words on earth be these : Jesus, Maria ! Blessed
be Jesus and Mary ! O good Jesus, be to me
Jesus ! Mary, Mother of Jesus, be the mother of
my soul !

* CEuvres Completes, vol. iii., "Manuel de Piete."

148 The Reign of Jesus

XIV. Our Actions and the Holy Liberty
of the Children of God.

I have suggested to you these little practices
in order to point out to you the road you must
follow if you desire always to walk in God's
presence and live in the spirit of Jesus. This
same Spirit will teach you others, if you take care
to give yourself to, Him at the beginning of your
actions. For I beg you to notice that the practice
of all practices, the secret of secrets, the devotion
of devotions, is not to attach oneself exclusively
to any one particular practice or exercise of devo-
tion. Take care, on the contrary, in all your
exercises and all your actions to give yourself
up to the Holy Spirit of Jesus with humility,
confidence, and detachment from all things, so
that, finding you detached from your own spirit
and from your own devotions and dispositions, He
may have full power and full liberty to act in you
as He desires, to inspire you with such dispositions
and sentiments of devotion as He shall judge well,
and to lead you by the ways which are pleasing
to Him. And having thus given yourself to Him,
be faithful in receiving the good sentiments and
dispositions with which He inspires you, and in
following His impulse and His guidance. If He
inspires you to make use of other exercises, and
to find in them grace and blessing, well and good,
make use of them. If He draws you on to others
yet more excellent, and in which you find yet more
grace and unction, follow the leading with sim-
plicity and humility.

II

WHAT WE SHOULD DO EACH WEEK

Perpetual Adoration of Jesus : Intimacy
with Jesus.

" Master, where dwellest Thou ? Come and see "
(S. Johni. 38).

" We would see Jesus " (S. John xii. 21).

" His praise shall ever be in my mouth " (Ps. xxxiii. 2).

SUMMARY.

To contemplate, adore, and reproduce the life of Jesus
— such is the programme of the Christian life. Therefore
the Blessed Jean Eudes fixes our attention on the different
stages of the life of Jesus, and he invites us to choose one
day in the week to honour each of them in turn :

1. Sunday : The life of Jesus in the bosom of the
Father from all eternity, and His glorious life since the
Ascension.

2. Monday : The first instant of the life of Jesus in
time.

3. Tuesday : The life of Jesus during His childhood.

4. Wednesday : The hidden and laborious life of Jesus.

5. Thursday : The life of Jesus among men and in the
Blessed Sacrament.

6. Friday : The suffering life of Jesus.

7. Saturday : The life of Jesus in Mary, and of Mary in
Jesus.

Our devotion to Mary.
The weekly Confession.
Indulgences.

EXPLANATION.

The beautiful Elevations of the Blessed Jean Eudes
may be most useful to us either during our visit to the
Blessed Sacrament or as an exercise of the presence of God
149

i 50 The Reign of Jesus

1. In the Visit to the Blessed Sacrament. — Nothing is
more profitable than to consider, each in its turn, the
diverse states of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. He wills
to renew and perpetuate them in It till the end of time.

"These," says Father Faber, "are the propositions
which it concerns us to prove : In the Blessed Sacrament
Jesus unites His different forms of existence, reproduces
all His mysteries, combines all His perfections, accom-
plishes His work, and consummates His union. . . . The
Blessed Sacrament represents, as in a picture, these seven,
existences of Jesus : His life in the womb of Mary, His
life as a Child, His hidden life, His public life, His suffering
life, His life after His Resurrection, and His life after His
Ascension. At the same time the Blessed Sacrament,
while It represents them, is not simply a figure of these
lives : It shows them as really as they exist, and repro-
duces in Itself all that is wonderful in the condescension
of these existences, and especially their marvellous
variety " (" The Blessed Sacrament," Bk. iv., sect. iv.).

How fruitful is this doctrine, and what a glorious out-
look it places before our view ! The Elevations of the
Blessed Jean Eudes offer us the means of honouring in
spirit and in truth the diverse states of Jesus in the Holy
Eucharist.

2. As an Exercise 0/ the Presence of God. — The exercise
of the presence of God may be practised in several ways,
but the soul trained in the school of the Blessed Jean
Eudes desires to make her dear Saviour the only object
of her thoughts, of her desires, of her affections, the sole
end of her actions, her centre, her paradise, her all ; she
desires to withdraw into Him, as into a place of refuge
— in a word, she desires to abide with Him at all times.
The Elevations show her where Jesus dwells, what He
is, what He is doing. She is thus able to follow Him
into all His dwelling-places, and unite herself to all
His actions.

We find in a page ot Father Faber a resume of these
Elevations: "Let us offer to the Father all the un-
speakable worship which our Lord's mystical life in the
Blessed Sacrament is offering Him from a thousand
thousand tabernacles ; the poverty, the humiliation, the
obedience to His priests, and zeal for souls ; the refraining
of His senses, the endurance of sacrileges, the patient
love, the miraculous manifestations of that hidden life.
Or, again, we may draw upon the past. There is the act

What We should Do each Week 151

of love in the moment of the Incarnation, the imprison-
ment for nine long months in Mary's blessed womb, the
virtues practised there, and the world governed from
thence. There is the Nativity and the mysteries of the
first twelve years, Bethlehem, Egypt, Nazareth, and
Jerusalem — all they mean and contain of the unfathom-
able humiliations of the Incarnate Word, and of His
inexpressible love for Mary and for men. There is the
hidden life at Nazareth, the hiddenness of the Omni-
present, the obedience of the Omnipotent, the poverty of
the All-rich, the fatigue of the Great Creator, the prayer
of God, the love for Joseph, the sanctification of Mary, the
merits and the satisfactions and the complacency of
Angels, of Mary, and of God in the wonders and virtues
of those eighteen years. There is the three years' min-
istry, the baptism by John, and the fasting in the wilder-
ness, His way with His disciples, His way with sinners,
the contradictions He encountered, the sermons He
preached, the miracles He wrought, the weariness He
endured. Then we come to the shore of the illimitable
sea of His most dear Passion, the seven journeys, the five
trials, the seven words ; and beyond that we have the
Risen Life, the various apparitions — especially that first
one to His Mother . . . and then the admirable pomp of
His Ascension. . . . All these are at our disposal for inter-
cession, and we may well believe they will have special
efficacy when suited to the sacred seasons of the year — all
except the Passion, which has all seasons for its own." *

I. Of the Three Days of the Week which we

SHOULD SPEND WITH PARTICULAR DEVOTION.

Amongst the days of the week there are three
in particular which deserve our attention, and
which we should spend with special devotion and
attachment to God.

The first of these is Monday. We should con-
secrate it in honour of the first day of the life of
Jesus on earth. On this day we should form the
desire of beginning a new life for our Lord and
of spending the working week holily in His service.
"All for Jesus," Ch. V.

1 52 The Reign of Jesus

The second is Friday, dedicated to the last day
of the life of Jesus on earth. We should consider
and spend it as if it were the last day of our life.

The third is Saturday, which is devoted to
honouring the life of Jesus and the life of Mary
His Mother. For this reason we should, on this
day, fulfil our duty to the Blessed Virgin with par-
ticular care and affection, and try to atone for
the negligences of which we have been guilty
during the week, towards her, and towards her Son.
It is a good thing, too, at the end of this day to
honour the Blessed Virgin in the last hour and the
last minute of her life, and to offer to her the last
hour and the last moment of our life.

ii. how we may honour the llfe of
Jesus each Week.

In order to spend holily all the other days of
the week, together with those of which we have
just been speaking, it is well to dedicate each day
to some part of the life of Jesus, so as to honour
it in a special way and to imprint it in ourselves
by meditation and by imitation. In fact, as,
according to the saying of the Apostle, " in Adam
we are all dead, but alive in Jesus Christ " ; and
as " Jesus Christ is our Life " ; we have no right
to live on the earth unless it be with the life of
Jesus Christ ; and God leaves us here only
that we may labour to destroy in ourselves the
guilty life of the old Adam, and to establish in
ourselves the holy and divine life of Jesus.

For this reason our chief exercise should be to
contemplate, adore, and imitate the life of Jesus,
so that, by this means, we may mould ourselves
into a perfect copy of this same life.

What We should Do each Week 153

To help you, I suggest a meditation for each day
of the week, of which you may make use to honour
the different stages of the life of Jesus.

SUNDAY.

ON THE DIVINE LIFE WHICH JESUS ENJOYS FROM
ALL ETERNITY IN THE BOSOM OF HIS FATHER.

i. O Jesus, my Lord and my God, I contem-
plate, adore, and glorify Thee in the divine life
which Thou hast enjoyed from all eternity in the
bosom of Thy Father, before Thine Incarnation
in the pure womb of Thy Mother. Oh ! how holy,
pure, divine, and admirable is this life ! How
filled is it for Thee with glory, grandeur, and
delight ! Oh, how do I rejoice to contemplate
Thee thus, living, from all eternity, a life so perfect,
so marvellous, and so full of content ! Be Thou
blessed, O Father of Jesus, for having bestowed
such a life on Thy beloved Son ! O Jesus, I offer
Thee all the glory, love, and praise that Thou
receivest from Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit,
during all the eternity of Thy divine life.

2. O Jesus, as I contemplate Thee in Thy divine,
eternal life, I see that the chief occupation of Thine
eternity is to contemplate, glorify, and love Thy
Father ; to refer and give Thyself to Him as to
Thy source ; to refer and give to Him Thy being,
Thy life, all Thy perfections, and all that Thou
wilt ever be, as a gift which Thou hast received
from Him, which Thou desirest to use for His
glory and for His love ; and to render Him a praise
and a love worthy of Him. Blessed be Thou, O
Jesus, for all these things. O most love-worthy
Father, how rejoiced I am to see Thee thus loved

154 The Reign of Jesus

and glorified by Thy Son ! I offer Thee all this
love, all this glory, which Thou didst receive from
Him during all the eternity of the divine life which
He enjoyed with Thee before His Incarnation.

3. O good Jesus, Thou hast employed all Thy
divine life for me. For, from all eternity Thou
thinkest of me, Thou lovest me, Thou offerest me
to Thy Father, and Thou offerest Thyself to Him to
come down one day to earth and to become Incar-
nate, to suffer and to die for love of me. O beloved
Jesus, Thou lovest me from all eternity, and I
know not whether I have even begun to love Thee
as I ought. Forgive me, O my Saviour. Oh !
let me live henceforward only to love Thee, now
and throughout eternity !

MONDAY

ON THE FIRST MOMENT OF THE LIFE OF
JESUS IN TIME.

I. O Jesus, I adore Thee at the moment of
Thine Incarnation, which is the first moment of Thy
temporal and suffering life. I honour all the mar-
vels which were accomplished in Thee at that
moment. Oh, what great things were accom-
plished in Thee and by Thee at that blessed moment
— with regard to Thy Father, to Thy Holy Spirit,
to Thy sacred Humanity, and to Thy blessed
Mother ! What thoughts, what affections,
what love, what a cleaving of Thy holy soul to
Thy Father at that instant, to adore and glorify
Him, to sacrifice Thyself wholly to His glory, and
to fulfil His Will ! O good Jesus, I honour these
first thoughts and these first acts of adoration, of

What We should Do each Week 155

oblation, of love and praise toward Thy Father.
Oh, how grandly and divinely didst Thou glorify
and love Him ! Of a truth, Thou didst render
Him infinitely more honour and love in this one
instant, than all Angels and men rendered to
Him in the five thousand years which preceded
Thine Incarnation, or that they will render Him
in all eternity. O Father of Jesus, what joy for
my soul to see Thee thus loved and glorified by
Thy Son ! O Jesus, be for ever blessed, loved,
and adored, for the honour and love which Thou
gavest Thy Father in this blessed moment of Thine
Incarnation.

2. O Jesus, considering Thee in this mystery,
I see, by the light of Faith, that Thou hadst high
purposes with regard to her in whom it was accom-
plished, and that Thou didst perform in her, great
and wondrous things. O Jesus, I honour Thy
first thoughts, the first words of love Thou didst
utter, and the first effects of grace, of light, and
of eminent holiness which Thou didst produce
in Thy blessed Mother at the moment of Thine
Incarnation. I honour also the first words of adora-
tion, praise, and love uttered by such a Mother
to such a Son. I bless Thee, O Jesus, for all the
marvels Thou didst work in Thy divine Mother
by this admirable mystery.

And blessed be thou, O Mother of Jesus, for all
the glory thou didst render thy Son in this same
mystery. Unite me, I beseech thee, to all the love
and honour which thou didst offer Him in this
first moment of His life, and make me a partaker
•of the love thou bearest Him, and of the zeal thou
hast for His glory.

3. O most love-worthy Jesus, at the same moment
in which Thou didst raise Thyself to Thy Father

156 The Reign of Jesus

in Thine Incarnation, Thou didst also abase Thyself
to me. At the same moment in which Thou didst
begin to think of Him, to refer Thyself to Him,
and to love Him, Thou didst begin also to think
of me, to give Thyself to me, and to love me. At
the same moment in which Thou didst begin to
live, Thou didst begin to live for me, to prepare
and acquire for me very great graces, and to
purpose great things for me. For at that
moment Thou didst conceive a great desire to
form in me the image of the mystery of Thine
Incarnation, and to become, in a way, incarnate
in me — that is to say, to unite Thyself to me, and
to unite me to Thee, corporally, and spiritually,
in the closest way, by Thy holy Grace and by Thy
divine Sacraments ; to fill me with Thyself, to
form and establish Thyself in me, so as to live and
reign in me perfectly. Oh, what goodness ! Oh,
what love ! I bless and thank Thee infinitely, 0
good Jesus. May all Thy mercies and all the
marvels Thou hast performed for the children of
men bless Thee eternally ! I humbly ask Thy
pardon for the hindrances I have, in the past, placed
in the way of the accomplishment of these high
purposes which Thou hast deigned to have with
regard to me. Do not permit me to do so in the
future, for I desire, henceforward, to destroy in
me, cost what it may, all that is opposed to Thy
holy Will. My Jesus, grant me grace and strength
to fulfil this purpose, I beseech Thee.

What We should Do each Week 157

TUESDAY.
ON THE HOLY CHILDHOOD OF JESUS.

1. 0 great and admirable Jesus, Thou wast
not content to become Man for love of men, but
Thou didst will also, to become a little Child, and
to subject Thyself to all the humiliations and
weaknesses of childhood, in order to honour Thine
eternal Father in all the stages of human life.
Blessed be Thou, O good Jesus, for this abase-
ment of Thyself ! May all Thy Saints and Angels
bless Thee eternally ! O most love-worthy Child,
I offer Thee the condition of childhood through
which I have passed, beseeching Thee most humbly,
by the virtue of Thy holy Childhood, to efface all
that was evil and imperfect in my childhood, and
to grant that that period of my life may be an
eternal homage to Thy most adorable Childhood.

2. O divine Jesus, contemplating Thee in Thy
holy Childhood, I see that Thou art not idle, but
that Thou performest great things : with regard
to Thine eternal Father, for Thou art ceaselessly
occupied in contemplating, adoring, and loving
Him ; with regard to Thy blessed Mother, shower-
ing down upon her an infinity of grace and bless-
ing ; with regard to S. Joseph, to the little S. John
Baptist, and to the other Saints with whom Thou
didst converse in Thy Childhood, producing in
them wondrous effects of light and holiness. I
adore, bless, and love Thee in all these Thy divine
employments, and in all the marvellous effects of
Thy divine Childhood. 1 offer Thee all the
honour and love Thou hast received during Thy
Childhood, from Thy Father, from Thy Holy
Spirit, from Thy blessed Mother, from S. Joseph,

158 The Reign of Jesus

from S. John Baptist, from S. Gabriel, and from
the other Saints and Angels belonging specially
to Thy divine Childhood.

3. O most love-worthy Child, I adore in Thee
all the thoughts, the purposes, and all the ardent
love which Thou hadst for me, when Thou wast
in this state. For Thou didst think of me, Thou
didst love me continually ; and from that time
Thou hast had a great desire to implant in me a
condition of holy and sacred childhood, that I
may imitate and honour the gentleness, sim-
plicity, humility, the purity of body and mind,
the obedience and innocence of Thy holy Child-
hood. O my Jesus, I give myself to Thee that
Thou mayst accomplish in me this purpose and
this desire. And, to this end, I will henceforth
endeavour, by the help of Thy grace, which I
pray for with all my heart, to become gentle,
humble, simple, pure, obedient, without gall,
bitterness, or malice, like a child, in order, by
this means, to honour Thy most adorable Child-
hood.

WEDNESDAY.

ON THE HIDDEN AND LABORIOUS LIFE OF
JESUS.

I. O Jesus, although Thou hadst so many, and
so great things to say and to do on earth ; though
Thou mightest have converted so many souls,
worked so many marvels, and done so much good
by Thine example and Thy holy preaching ; yet
Thou didst not will at first to hold converse with
men, but Thou didst lead a hidden and unknown
life on earth till the age of thirty years, doing
nothing ostensibly during this time which might

What We should Do each Week 159

make Thee known. On the contrary, Thou didst
remain hidden in Thy Father, in Whom Thy mind,
Thy heart, Thy desires, and Thine affections were
unceasingly centred. And Thou didst do this
in order to honour the hidden life which Thou
livest from all eternity in the bosom of Thy
Father ; and also to teach us how agreeable
to Thee are solitude and retirement, for, of the
thirty-three years Thou didst pass on earth, Thou
didst spend thirty in retirement and solitude,
and only three in conversing with mankind. I
bless Thee, O Jesus, for all the glory Thou didst
render to Thy Father, during these thirty years
of Thy hidden Life. Grant me, in honour of this
hidden, solitary Life, to love henceforth solitude
and retirement, both exterior and interior. With-
draw me and hide me in Thee. Draw my spirit
into Thy Spirit, my heart into Thy Heart, my life
into Thy life. For my part, I desire, hencefor-
ward, by the help of Thy grace, to labour to with-
draw myself by thought and by affection into
Thee, O my Jesus, as into the place of my refuge,
into my centre, my element, and my paradise,
outside of which is only hell and perdition. I
desire to abide always in Thee, according to the
commandment Thou hast given me : " Manete in
me " (S. John xv. 14) — that is to say, in Thy Love,
in Thy feelings and inclinations — and never to
leave Thee more.

2. O great and admirable Jesus, Thou didst
will to lead a life, unknown and despised, a life
mean and abject in the sight of men, a poor,
laborious, and suffering life, bearing the name, and
practising the trade, of a carpenter, in order to
teach us in the first place, by Thine example,
what Thou hast since taught is by Thy Word — i.e.,

160 The Reign of Jesus

" Quod hominibus altum est, abominatio est
ante Deum " — " That which is great in the sight
of men is abomination in the sight of God "
(S. Luke xvi. 15).

O Jesus, imprint this truth deep in my mind,
and engrave in my heart a profound hatred and
horror of all glory, praise, grandeur, and vanity, of
all which dazzles the sight of man, together with
a deep love of all lowness, abjectness, and hu-
miliation.

3. O Jesus, Thou art God as Thy Father is God,
and Thou art, with Him, one only God ; Thou
sharest His power and His labours, Thou hast
created and Thou preservest, Thou rulest with
Thy Father this great universe. From all eternity
Thou dost produce with Him a God and a divine
Person Who is the Holy Spirit — co-equal with
Thy Father and with Thee. Nevertheless, when
I consider Thee in Thy hidden and laborious life
on earth, I see Thee subjecting Thyself to all the
commonest and meanest needs of human life,
such as eating, drinking, sleeping, working, earning
Thy bread by the labour of Thy hands and the
sweat of Thy brow, and to all the other actions
and necessities of the life of man. But what fills
me with consolation and astonishment is, that
Thou art not less great or less admirable in these
little things, than Thou art in the great. For by
these mean and common actions, Thou renderest
infinite glory to Thy Father, because Thou per-
formest all Thine actions, O Jesus, even the
smallest and most ordinary, not with common
and ordinary dispositions, but with infinite Love
for Thy Father and for us. Thus hast Thou
merited and acquired, by the virtue of Thy holy
actions, a peculiar grace for all our actions to

What We should Do each Week 161

enable us to perform them holily. This is why
we can, and we should, perform them all holily ;
otherwise we render vain and useless the grace
Thou hast acquired for us to this end. Do not
permit it to be thus, O good Jesus. Grant me, I
beseech Thee, this grace, which Thou hast acquired
for me by Thy holy actions, that I may perform
mine holily. This is my desire and my resolution.
Grant me grace, I beseech Thee, to put it into
practice, and grant that, henceforward, I may
offer Thee all my actions, even the smallest, in
honour of Thine, and that I may perform them, as
far as possible, with the same intentions and
dispositions, as Thou hadst in performing Thine.

THURSDAY.

ON THE LIFE OF JESUS ON EARTH AND ON HIS
LIFE IN THE EUCHARIST.

I. 0 most love-worthy Jesus, Thou art living,
reigning, and conversing, from all eternity, with
Thy Father and with Thy Holy Spirit. Ah !
how sweet and delicious to Thee is this converse !
What glory, what love, what praise, dost Thou
thus receive from Thy Father and Thy Holy
Spirit ! Nevertheless, Thou didst will to come
out from the bosom of the Father, in order to
come down to earth, and to converse, eat and
drink, familiarly and visibly, not only with Thy
holy Mother, with S. Joseph, with Thy holy
Apostles and disciples, but also with sinners,
from whom Thou receivedst naught but outrage
and indignity.

And Thou hast willed to act thus :

(i) In order to honour, by the converse Thou

ii

1 62 The Reign of Jesus

hadst with Thy blessed Mother and with Thine
Apostles and disciples, the holy and divine con-
verse which Thou hast with Thy Father and Thy
Holy Spirit throughout eternity.

(2) In order to deliver us, by the suffering
Thou hast endured in conversing with sinners,
from the penalty we have incurred for our sins : the
being condemned for ever to the society of devils ;
and to make us worthy to live eternally in the
society of Thy Saints and Angels, of Thy blessed
Mother and of the three divine Persons.

(3) In order to testify to us how true it is
that " Thy delight is to be with the children of
men/'

(4) In order to acquire for us, by the merit of
Thy life of converse with mankind, the grace we
need in order to converse holily with one another.

(5) In order that Thy conversation, all holy
and all divine, may be to us a model for our
intercourse with our neighbour.

2. I adore Thee, O Jesus, and I bless and love
Thee for all these reasons. 1 adore Thee in Thy
public life, which lasted from the age of thirty
till Thy death. I adore Thee in all that Thou
didst and sufferedst during tnat time — that is to
say, in all Thy actions, words, preachings, miracles,
journeys, labours, fatigues ; and in all Thy thoughts,
feelings, purposes, affections, and dispositions. I
bless Thee, a thousand times, for all the glory Thou
hast rendered Thy Father in all these things.
1 offer Thee all the love and honour which were
offered Thee during Thy life of human converse,
by all the Saints who conversed with Thee. I offer
Thee also, all the conversations which I have had,
and shall ever have, with my neighbour, in homage
to Thine, and I beg Thee to grant that they may

What We should Do each Week 163

be all consecrated to the glory of Thy life of con-
verse with mankind.

3. O Jesus, I adore in Thee the holy and divine
dispositions with which Thou hast conversed
with men. Oh ! with what humility, charity,
gentleness, patience, modesty, detachment from
all created things, and application of Thy mind
to God, hast Thou conversed ! O my Saviour,
I desire, henceforth, to converse with my neighbour
with these same dispositions. But, alas ! how
far am I from doing so ! and how often have I
offended in this way in the past ! Pardon me,
and give me, I pray Thee, these holy dispositions.

4. O Lord, Thou wast not content to live and
converse with us during the time of Thy mortal
life, but, when Thou wast on the point of ascending
into Heaven, Thine unquenchable love for us, and
the extreme desire Thou hadst, to prove to us how
true it is, that Thy delight is to be with us, caused
Thee to find an admirable means for remaining
always with us, and even for taking up Thine
abode with us, and for giving Thyself to us, with all
the treasures and marvels which are in Thee. And
this means is the divine Eucharist, the epitome
of Thy marvels, and the most sublime proof of
Thy love for us. O Love ! O Goodness ! why am
I not all transformed into love and praise for
Thee ! O Jesus, pardon me, I beseech Thee, the
misuse I have made in the past of a grace so great ;
and grant that, for the future, I may make a better
use of this divine Sacrament, and that, as Thou
dost take delight in being with me, so I may find
all my joy in conversing with Thee, in thinking
of Thee, and in loving and glorifying Thee.

164 The Reign of Jesus

FRIDAY.

ON THE SUFFERINGS AND ON THE DEATH OF
JESUS.

i. O Jesus, Thou art the love and delight of
God and of the Angels, and of the whole universe.
Thou art the God of consolation, the Source of all
joy and gladness, joy and blessedness itself. Never-
theless, when I look on Thee in Thy mortal life, and
especially in the last day of that life, I see that Thou
art the object of the wrath and of the persecution
of Heaven, of earth, of hell, of God, of men, and
of all created things. I see that all things league
themselves together against Thee, and do their
utmost to make Thee suffer ; and that Thou art,
as it were, a mark, exposed to all kinds of con-
tradiction and outrage. I see Thee so full of
suffering, bitterness, and torture in all parts of
Thy Body and of Thy Soul, that Thou seemest to
be all pain and suffering. This is why Thy
prophet calls Thee the Man of Sorrows — " Virum
dolorum." Oh ! my sweet Jesus, what hath reduced
Thee to so pitiful a state ? It is Thy goodness,
my Saviour, it is the excess of Thy love. O
my sweet Love, I adore, love, and bless Thee in
all Thy sufferings of body and of mind ; above all,
I adore in Thee the holy and divine dispositions
with which Thou hast suffered. Oh ! with what
submission to the will of Thy Father ; with what
a humbling of Thy holy soul at the view of the
sins of the whole world with which Thou wast
laden ; with what love for us ; with what patience
and gentleness towards Thine enemies, didst Thou
bear Thyself in the midst of Thy sufferings ! Ah !
what shame for me to see my Jesus enduring

What We should Do each Week 165

such sufferings, and enduring them with such
dispositions, and to see myself so sensitive to the
slightest vexation, and so devoid of similar dis-
positions ! 0 good Jesus, I give myself to Thee
to suffer with Thee all it shall please Thee to
inflict, and I offer Thee all that I have suffered,
and all that I shall suffer, during all my life.
Unite, I pray Thee, my sufferings and my labours
to Thine ; bless them with Thine ; make use of
them as of Thine, to glorify Thy Father and to
honour Thy holy Passion and to make me a
sharer in the love, the humility, and in the other
dispositions with which Thou hast suffered.

2. O most love-worthy Jesus, Thou hast en-
dured the torments of the Cross and of death with
such love for Thy Father and for us, that Thy
Holy Spirit, speaking in the Holy Scriptures of
the day of Thy Passion and of Thy death, calls
it the day of the joy of Thy heart, to show us
that Thou didst find Thy joy and content in
suffering. O my Saviour, grant me also, in
imitation of Thee, to find my joy and paradise in
this world, in trouble and labour, in contempt
and in suffering, for it is by this means that I can
render Thee the more of glory and of love. Im-
print these dispositions in my soul, and engrave
in my heart a profound hatred of earthly delights
and pleasures, and a special love for labour and
suffering.

3. O Jesus, I contemplate Thee, and I adore
Thee, suffering and dying on the Cross. I adore
the mysteries which were accomplished in Thee
in the last moment of Thy life : Thy last thoughts,
words, actions, and sufferings ; the last use Thou
madest of the senses of Thy Body and the faculties
of Thy Soul ; the last effects of grace which Thou

1 66 The Reign of Jesus

didst produce in the soul of Thy blessed Mother,
and in the other holy souls who were at the foot
of Thy Cross ; Thy lasts acts of adoration and love
to Thy Father ; the last feelings and the last dis-
positions of Thy Heart and Soul ; and, finally, Thy
last breath. I offer Thee the last moment of
my life, in honour of the last moment of Thy
most holy life. Bless it, O Jesus, my Saviour,
sanctify it by Thine ; unite it to Thine ; make
me a sharer in the holy and divine dispositions
which Thou hadst in dying. Grant, I beseech
Thee, that all in me may render homage to Thy
last dispositions, and that my last breath may be
consecrated to the honour of Thy last breath,
and that it may be an act of most pure and
most perfect love to Thee.*

* It is a devout custom amongst Christian people to •
make the Way of the Cross on the Friday of each week.
The Blessed Jean Eudes does not recommend anywhere
this devout exercise. Here is a little method drawn up
for the use of children/and which has been adopted by a
large number of grown-up people. The method is in
absolute conformity with the mind and teaching of the
Blessed Jean Eudes.

It suffices to look attentively at the picture of each
station, reflecting how much Jesus suffered for us. At
each station one repeats the following invocations :

First Station. — Jesus, condemned to death, I believe in
Thee ;
Jesus, condemned to death, I hope in Thee ;
Jesus, condemned to death, I love Thee ;
Jesus, condemned to death, forgive me my sins ;
Jesus, condemned to death, have mercy upon me.
Second Station. — Jesus, laden with the Cross, I believe

in Thee, etc.
Third Station. — Jesus, falling for the first time, I believe

in Thee, etc.
Fourth Station. — Jesus, meeting Thy Mother, I believe

in Thee.
Fifth Station. — Jesus, aided by Simon of Cyrene, I believe
in Thee, etc.

What We should Do each Week 167

SATURDAY.

ON THE LIFE OF JESUS IN MARY, AND OF MARY
IN JESUS.

i. O Jesus, only-Begotten Son of God, only Son
of Mary, I consider and adore Thee, living and
reigning in Thy most holy Mother, being and
doing all things in her. For, if it be true, accord-
ing to the saying of the Apostle, that Thou art
all, and dost all in all things, still more is it true
of Thy most holy Mother. Thou art her life, her
soul, her heart, her spirit, her treasure. Thou
art in her, sanctifying her on earth, glorifying
her in Heaven. Thou art in her, accomplishing
greater wonders, receiving greater glory, in her
and through her, than in all other creatures of
Heaven and earth. Thou art in her, endowing her
with Thy qualities and Thy perfections, with Thy
inclinations and dispositions ; imprinting in her a
most perfect image of Thyself, of all Thy states,

Sixth Station. — Jesus, consoled by S. Veronica, I believe

in Thee, etc.
Seventh Station. — Jesus, falling for the second time, I

believe in Thee, etc.
Eighth Station. — Jesus, consoling the daughters of

Jerusalem, I believe in Thee, etc.
Ninth Station. — Jesus, falling for the third time, I

believe in Thee, etc.
Tenth Station. — Jesus, stripped of Thy clothing, I

believe in Thee, etc.
Eleventh Station. — Jesus, nailed to the Cross, I believe

in Thee, etc.
Twelfth Station. — Jesus, dying on the Cross, I believe in

Thee, etc.
Thirteenth Station. — Jesus, taken down from the Cross,

I believe in Thee, etc.
Fourteenth Station. — Jesus, laid in the sepulchre. I

believe in Thee, etc.

1 68 The Reign of Jesus

mysteries, and virtues ; and making her like Thee,
so that whoever sees Jesus, sees Mary, and whoever
sees Mary sees Jesus. Blessed be Thou, 0 Jesus,
for all Thou art, and all Thou dost, in Thy
most holy Mother. I offer Thee all the delight,
all the love, all the glory, Thou hast ever had, or
ever will have, in her.

2. O Mother of Jesus, I honour and revere thee
in the most holy and most admirable life that
thou hast in thy Son Jesus — a life adorned with
all kind of virtues and of perfection ; a life of
which one single instant is dearer to God than all
the lives of Angels and men ; a life which renders
more honour and more love to God than all other
lives of Heaven and earth ; a life which is no
other than the life of Thy Son Jesus, which He
communicates to thee, in a special and ineffable
manner. Blessed be thou, O holy Virgin, for all
the honour which thou hast rendered to thy
beloved Son during thy whole life. I offer thee
my life, O Mother of life and of grace, and I
consecrate it wholly in honour of thine, and I
beseech, with all my heart, thy Son Jesus, God
of life and of love, by His great goodness, to
grant that my life may render an unceasing and
eternal homage to His most holy life and to
thine.

3. O Jesus, God of my life and of my heart,
Thou hast a very great desire to live in me and to
make me to live a holy and heavenly life in Thee.
Pardon me, I beseech Thee, all the hindrances I
have hitherto placed, by my sins and by my in-
fidelity, in the way of the accomplishment of this
desire. Destroy in me the corrupt and depraved
life of the old Adam ; establish in me Thy holy
and perfect life. Live fully in my spirit, in my

What We should Do each Week 169

heart, and in my soul ; accomplish therein all
Thou desirest for Thy glory ; love and glorify
Thyself in me as it pleaseth"Thee. 0 Mother of
Jesus, obtain for me, I beseech Thee, from thy
Son, the fulfilment of this my desire.

ANOTHER MEDITATION FOR SUNDAY.

ON THE GLORIOUS LIFE OF JESUS IN HEAVEN
SINCE HIS RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION.

I. 0 Jesus, having considered and adored Thee,
in Thy mortal and suffering life, in the agony of
Thy Cross, in the shadow of death, and in the
dust of the sepulchre, I desire now to contemplate
and adore Thee in the grandeur, light, and bliss
of the blessed and glorious life upon which Thou
hast entered by Thy Resurrection, and which
Thou enjoyest in Heaven in the bosom and in the
glory of Thy Father since Thine Ascension — that
is to say, for more than eighteen hundred years.
O life of my Jesus, immortal and impassible life,
wholly free from all the miseries and necessities of
earth to which Thou wast subject before Thy
Resurrection ; life wholly hidden and absorbed in
the Godhead ; life of love, of most pure love !
For Jesus, in His glorious life, has no other em-
ployment than that of loving His Father, of loving
blessing, and glorifying His Father for us, of
offering us to His Father, and of interceding for
us with His Father. O life most holy, most
pure, and most divine ! O life full of unspeakable
joy and happiness ! O life enjoying the fulness of
glory, grandeur, and felicity which is in God !
O my sweet Jesus, what joy for my heart to see
Thee living such a life ! Oh ! blessed for ever be

170 The Reign of Jesus

Thy most loving Father for having bestowed on
Thee this life !

2. O love-worthy Jesus, not only art Thou
living Thyself, with a glorious and blessed life, but
Thou dost live also in all the Saints and Angels
who are with Thee in Heaven. For it is Thou Who
art living in them, Who dost communicate to
them Thy glorious and immortal life, and Who
art glorious and blessed in them. It is Thou
Who art all, and Who workest all things in them,
according to the witness of the Apostle : " Omnia
in omnibus (1 Cor. xiii. 6 ; Eph. i. 23). It is
Thou Who dost adore, praise, and love Thine
eternal Father and Thyself in them and by them.
Blessed be Thou for all these things, O good Jesus.
I offer Thee the glorious and blessed life of all the
inhabitants of Heaven, together with all the love
and praise which they render, and will render
eternally, in homage to the blessed and glorious life
which Thou hast in Thyself. And I pray all Thy
Saints and Angels to love and glorify Thee for
me, and to unite me with all the love and glory
which they render Thee, and will render Thee
everlastingly.

3. O most love-worthy Jesus, I know that, as
Thou dost love me infinitely and as Thou dost
desire most ardently, because of the zeal Thou
hast for Thy glory, to be perfectly loved and
glorified in me ; so also, Thou hast an infinite
desire to draw me to Thee in Heaven, so that Thou
mayest live in me perfectly, and establish in me
fully, the kingdom of Thy glory and of Thy love.
For Thou canst not live and reign perfectly in me
whilst I am on earth. This is why, my Saviour,
I desire no longer to live on earth, save to sigh
and to long for Heaven, Heaven ! 0 Heaven !

What We should Do each Week 171

how desirable art thou, how worthy of love !
Ah ! God of Heaven, when shall I behold Thy holy
face ? Ah ! when wilt Thou live in me wholly ?
When shall I love Thee perfectly ?

O life of earth, how hard thou art, how in-
tolerable ! O God of my life and of my heart,
how long and how cruel is this life, in which Thou
art so little loved and so often offended.

ELEVATION TO JESUS IN ALL THE MYSTERIES OF
HIS LIFE.

0 Jesus, my Lord, prostrate at Thy feet, I
offer myself to the might of Thy divine Spirit
and of Thy holy love ; and by the immense virtue
of this Spirit and in the infinite greatness of this
same love, I adore, glorify, and love Thee in
Thyself, and in all the mysteries and in all the
stages of Thy life.

1 adore Thee in Thy divine life, which Thou
hast lived from all eternity in the bosom of Thy
Father.

I adore Thee in the temporal life which Thou
hast lived on earth for thirty-three years.

I adore Thee in the first moment of this life ;
in Thy holy Childhood ; in Thy hidden and
laborious life ; in Thy life of converse with mankind,
when Thou didst walk visibly on the earth ; in the
life which Thou still hast with us in the Holy
Eucharist.

I adore Thee in all Thy sufferings, bodily and
mental, and in the last moment of Thy life of pain.

I adore Thee in Thy glorious and blessed life,
which Thou hast lived in Heaven for eighteen
hundred years.

I adore Thee in the life Thou livest in Thy

172 The Reign of Jesus

most holy Mother, and in all Thy Angels and in
all Thy Saints, both in Heaven and earth.

And, in general, I adore, love, and glorify Thee
in all the other mysteries and marvels which are
comprised within the immense extent of Thy life,
divine, temporal, and glorious.

I bless Thee, and I give Thee infinite thanks, for
all the glory which Thou hast rendered, and wilt
for ever render, to Thy Father, by all the con-
ditions of Thy life.

I offer Thee all the love and honour which
Thou hast received, and wilt receive eternally, in
all Thy states and mysteries, from Thy Father,
from Thy divine Spirit, from Thy holy Mother,
from all Thy Angels and from all Thy Saints,
beseeching them most humbly to love and glorify
Thee for me, in every way which is possible, and
which conduces to Thy glory.

ELEVATION TO JESUS, TO CONSECRATE TO HIM
ALL THE STAGES OF OUR LIFE.

I give myself to Thee, O Jesus, and I beseech
Thee to come into my heart, and to imprint therein
a perfect resemblance of Thyself, of Thy life, of
Thy mysteries, of Thy qualities, and of Thy
virtues.

Come, O Lord Jesus, come into my heart, to
destroy therein all that is not Thee, to establish
Thyself therein perfectly, to be all, and do all,
therein, in order that my whole being, my life,
and all that belongs thereto, may be wholly conse-
crated to the honour of Thy sovereign life. That
my birth — in the order of nature and of grace — •
that my childhood, my youth, my life among
men, my sickness, my death, my burial, and, in

What We should Do each Week 173

general, all the stages of my mortal and immortal
life, may be acts of homage to Thy birth, to Thy
childhood, to Thy youth, to Thy public life, to
Thy dying, to Thy death, to Thy burial, and to
all the other stages of Thy temporal and eternal
life. That all my thoughts, all my words, and
all my actions, may do honour to Thy thoughts,
words, and actions. That all the steps I take,
all my labours and sufferings, may render homage
to the steps Thou hast taken on the earth, to Thy
labours and Thy sufferings. That all the powers
of my soul, all the members and all the senses of
my body, may be dedicated in honour of the
powers of Thy soul, and of the members and senses
of Thy divine Body. In short, that all that has
been, all that is, and all that shall be, in me, may
be an unceasing and eternal act of adoration,
praise, and love for Thee.

O Lord Jesus, come into my heart, in order to
live and reign in it absolutely, to love and glorify
Thyself worthily, to accomplish the purposes of
Thy goodness, to complete the work of Thy grace,
to establish therein for ever the kingdom of Thy
glory and of Thy pure love. " Veni, Domine Jesu,
veni in plenitudine virtu tis tuse, in sanctitate
Spiritus tui, in perlectione mysteriorum tuorum,
et in puritate viarum tuarum. Veni, Domine
Jesu."

Come, Lord Jesus, come into my heart ; come
in the fulness of Thy strength, in order to destroy
therein all that is displeasing to Thee, and to
accomplish therein all Thou desirest for Thy
glory. Come, in the holiness of Thy Spirit, to
detach me wholly from all that is not Thee, to
unite me perfectly to Thee, and to guide me
holily in all my actions. Come, in the perfection

174 The Reign of Jesus

of Thy mysteries — that is to say, to accomplish in
me that which Thou desirest to accomplish by Thy
mysteries, to govern me according to the spirit
and the grace of Thy mysteries, to glorify, accom-
plish, and perfect in me Thy mysteries. Come in
the purity of Thy ways — that is to say, in order to
fulfil in me, at whatever cost, and without sparing
me, all the purposes of Thy pure love ; to lead me in
the straight paths of this pure love, not permitting
me to deviate from it to right or to left, and not
yielding in aught to the inclinations of my corrupt
nature and of my self-love. Come, 0 Lord Jesus.

III. On Devotion towards the Blessed
Virgin : How we should honour Jesus in
Mary, and Mary in Jesus.

The devotion for the most holy Virgin Mother
of God is so pleasing to her Son, is so highly to be
recommended, so dear and so familiar to all true
followers of Christ, that it is not necessary to
enjoin it on those who desire to live as good
Christians.

I would, therefore, merely say that we ought
not to separate what God has united in a union
so perfect. Jesus and Mary are so closely bound
one to the other that whoever sees Jesus sees
Mary ; whoever loves Jesus, loves Mary ; whoever
has devotion for Jesus, has devotion for Mary.
Jesus and Mary are the two chief foundations of
the Christian Religion, the two living sources of
all our blessings, the two objects of our devotion,
and the two objectives on which we should fix
our eyes, in all our actions, and in all our exercises
of devotion. He who has no devotion for the
Mother of Jesus Christ and of all Christians, is

What We should Do each Week 175

himself no true Christian. Thus S. Anselm and
S. Bonaventure assert that it is impossible that
those who are not loved by the Mother of Jesus
should be partakers with Jesus Christ ; as, on the
other hand, it is impossible that those should
perish, whom she regards with favour.

As we are to continue the virtues, and repro-
duce in ourselves the feelings of Jesus, so we
should also continue and reproduce in ourselves
the feelings of love, filial piety, and devotion,
which this same Jesus had with regard to His
Mother. Now, He loved her most perfectly, and
honoured her most supremely ; choosing her for
His Mother ; giving Himself to her as her Son ;
taking from her a new life ; linking Himself to her
by the closest of ties ; becoming subject to her ;
accepting from her direction in external things,
during His Childhood and His hidden life ; estab-
lishing her sovereign of Heaven and earth ; glorify-
ing her, and causing her to be glorified throughout
the world.

In order to continue on earth this filial piety
and this devotion of Jesus towards His most holy
Mother, we should have for her a special devotion
and cultus. Now, in order to honour her as God
requires of us, and as she, herself, desires, we have
three things to do.

1. We must consider and adore her Son in her
and see and adore naught else. For it is thus that
she desires to be honoured, because, of herself and
by herself, she is nothing, but her Son Jesus is
All in her : He is her very being, her life, her
holiness, her glory, her power, and her greatness.
We must give thanks to Jesus for the glory He
has rendered to Himself, in her and by her. We
must offer ourselves to Him and pray Him to give

176 The Reign of Jesus

us to her, and to consecrate our life and our actions
in honour of her life and actions ; to make us
sharers in the love she bore Him and in all her other
virtues ; to make use of us in order to honour her
or rather to honour Himself in her, in the manner
most pleasing to Him.

2. We should honour her as the Mother of
our God, and also as our Mother and sovereign
Lady ; we should thank her for all the love, the
glory, and the services she rendered to her Son
Jesus Christ our Lord ; we should refer to her,
after God, our life and our being ; we should put
ourselves under her protection, and beg her to
take the direction of all that concerns us ; we
should give and subject ourselves to her as her
slaves, imploring her to exercise full power over
us, as over a thing which is wholly hers. We should
beg her to dispose of us, as she shall please, for the
glory of her Son ; to deign to make use of all our
actions in order to honour those of her Son ; and
to associate us with all the love and praise which
she has ever rendered Him, and which she will
render Him to all eternity.*

It is a good plan to fulfil this duty every day,
and more particularly once a week, or at least
once a month.

3. We can and ought to honour this incompar-
able Virgin : by the thoughts of our mind — con-
sidering the holiness of her life and the perfection
of her virtues ; by our words — taking pleasure in
speaking of her excellencies, and in hearing them
spoken of ; by our actions — offering them all to

* Mary's praise is an almost boundless worship which we
can offer to God. . . . Mary is the Christian's Benedicite.
. . . Dear Mother, what a joy to us to know that thou art
such praise to God. — Faber, " All for Jesus," ch. vii. 9.

What We should Do each Week 177

her in union with, and in homage to, hers ; by
imitation — trying to reproduce in ourselves her
virtues, especially her humility, her charity, her
pure love, her detachment from all created things,
and her all-divine purity. This last reflection
should inspire us with a strong desire to avoid,
fear, and dread, more than death, the least offence
against purity, whether by thought, word, or act.

4. Finally, we can honour the Blessed Virgin
by some prayer, by some exercise of devotion,
such as the rosary — the use of which should be
common to all Christians — such as the Office of
the Blessed Virgin, which we should recite in union
with the love and devotion which her Son Jesus
has for her, and in honour of the life of her Son
Jesus and of hers, and of their actions and of their
virtue.

I will add yet one word : as we should honour
each year a particular mystery of Jesus, so it is
well to choose every year, the day of the Assump-
tion of the Blessed Virgin, some one of the
mysteries of her life, in order to honour it in a
special way during the year. For this reason I
enumerate here the principal ones.

IV. Devotion to the Blessed Virgin : The
Principal States and Mysteries of Her
Life.

The principal states and mysteries of the life
of the Blessed Virgin are : her Conception ; her
abode in the blessed womb of her mother, S. Anne ;
her birth ; the day on which she received the holy
name of Mary — that is to say, eight days after
her birth ; her Presentation in the Temple ; her
holy childhood till the age of twelve ; her sojourn

\z

178 The Reign of Jesus

in the Temple, where she served till the age of
fifteen ; her marriage to S. Joseph ; the Incarna-
tion of Jesus in her, and her elevation to the
dignity of Mother of God ; the abode of Jesus in
her ; her Visitation to S. Elizabeth, and her
sojourn of three months with her ; her journey
from Nazareth to Bethlehem ; her divine child-
birth ; her Purification ; her flight into Egypt,
and her sojourn there with the Child Jesus and
S. Joseph ; her return from Egypt, and her sojourn
at Nazareth with her Son till His thirtieth year ;
all the journeys she took with her Son Jesus,
following Him everywhere during His public life ;
her martyrdom at the foot of the Cross ; her joy
in the Resurrection and Ascension of her Son ;
her life on earth, from the Ascension of her Son
till her Assumption ; the Holy Communions she
made during this time ; her blessed death ; her
glorious resurrection ; her triumphal Assumption ;
her throne at the right hand of her Son, in her
character of Queen of Heaven and earth ; the
glorious and blessed life she has in Heaven since
her Assumption.

Elevation to the Blessed Virgin, which may be Applied
to each Mystery of her Life.

O holy Virgin, I adore and honour, in every
way possible, thy Son Jesus in thee ; and I honour
and revere thee, as far as I can and ought, for all
that thou art in Him and by Him. Particularly
I honour and revere thee in the mystery of thy
Immaculate Conception, of thy birth, etc. I
honour all the feelings and dispositions of thy holy
soul, and all that took place in thee by this
mystery. Blessed be thou, O holy Virgin, for all

What We should Do each Week 179

the glory thou hast rendered to God in this mystery,
and in all thy life.

I ask thy pardon, O Mother of mercy, for all
the negligences and sins which I have committed
during my life, against thee and against thy Son ;
and in reparation of these offences, I offer thee all
the honour and praise which has ever been rendered
thee in Heaven and on earth.

O Mother of Jesus, I give myself wholly to thee ;
give me, I beseech thee, to thy Son ; destroy in
me, by thy merits and thy prayers, all that is
displeasing to Him. Make me a sharer in thy
most pure love, in thy humility, and in thy other
virtues. Grant that all my life and all my actions
may be devoted to honouring the life and actions
of thy Son. Associate me with all the love and
all the glory which thou wilt give Him eternally,
and make use of my being, of my life, of all that
is in me — as of a thing entirely thine — to glorify
Him in the manner most pleasing to thee.

V. The Sacrament of Penance.

Confession. — The frequent use of the Sacrament
of Penance is most necessary, most conducive, to
the glory of God, and to the sanctification of
Christian souls. Approach it, then, every week
after a serious preparation.

1. You should kneel down at the feet of our
Lord ; consider Him chiefly in the Garden of
Olives, weighed down with the burden of our
sins, bedewed with a bloody sweat, and plunged
in unspeakable anguish.

2. Ask Him to enlighten you, that you may
know and acknowledge your sins ; to inspire you
with His own horror of sin, that you may detest and

180 The Reign of Jesus

avoid it in the future ; to make you sensible of
the suffering it causes Him, so that you may
repent of your sins.

3. After this prayer, examine yourself carefully,
and endeavour to excite in yourself a real sorrow
for having offended your God.

4. Present yourself at the feet of the priest, as
before him who occupies the place of Jesus Christ.
Go thither in the character of a criminal, guilty
of high treason against God, with the firm intention
of humbling yourself, and of taking the side of
God against yourself.

5. After having received Absolution, be careful
to thank our Lord for so great a favour, for the
forgiveness of sins is a benefit superior to that
which should preserve us from sickness, or from
death itself.

Contrition. — Contrition is so powerful, so holy,
and so admirable, that a single act of perfect
contrition is capable of effacing a thousand mortal
sins, did they exist in a soul. This is in what it
consists :

Perfect contrition is a hatred and horror, a
grief and a repentance, for the sin one has com-
mitted, because it is displeasing to God. It is,
therefore, an act of our will, by which we protest
to God that we desire to hate and detest our sins ;
that we are grieved at having committed them ;
that we renounce them, and that we mean to
forsake them, not so much because it is our own
interest to do so, but for the love of God. I
mean, not so much on account of the harm, wrong,
and injury which we have done to ourselves by
our sins, but on account of the insult, the dis-
honour, the torment, and the cruel death which
we have inflicted on our Lord by these same sins.

What We should Do each Week 1 8 1

It is well to notice that, in order to have a
perfect contrition, it is not necessary to shed tears,
or to feel deep grief for one's sins ; for contrition,
being a spiritual and interior act of the will —
which is a spiritual power of the soul independent
of the senses — one can make an act of contrition
without being sensible of any grief. It is suf-
ficient to protest to our Lord, by an act of the
will, that we will to hate and detest our sins and
to renounce them for the future because they are
displeasing to Him.

Notice, also, that contrition is a gift of God
and an effect of grace. This is why, though you
may be perfectly aware in what it consists, and
though you may employ all the strength of your
mind and will to excite it in your heart, you can
never obtain it unless the Holy Spirit gives it to
you. But, for your consolation, be assured that
He will not refuse to give it to you, if you ask it
of Him, with humility, confidence, and perse-
verance.

Acts of Contrition.

0 my most love-worthy Jesus, my will is to hate
and detest my sins for love of Thee.

0 my Saviour, I renounce all sin for ever
because it is displeasing to Thee.

O my Jesus, my will is to hate and to abhor my
sins, because of the insult and dishonour which
Thou hast endured by their means.

0 my God, would that I had never offended
Thee, for Thou art worthy of all honour and love.

O my Lord, I desire to have all the contrition for
my sins which it shall please Thee to give me.

O my God, I would that I could have in my

1 82 The Reign of Jesus

heart, all the grief and contrition that the holy
penitents ever had for their sins.

O good Jesus, make me to share the grief which
Thou hast for my sins ; for I desire to have the
same grief that Thou hast, as far as is possible.

0 Father of Jesus, I offer Thee the contrition
and the penitence which Thy beloved Son had for
my sins.

O most love-worthy Jesus, grant that I may
detest and abhor my sins, because they were the
cause of Thy torments, and of the death Thou didst
suffer on the Cross.

O my God, I desire to hate my sins, as Thy Saints
and Angels hate them.

O my God, I desire to hate and detest my sins,
as Thou dost hate and detest them.

VI. Indulgences.

Opportunities of gaining Indulgences frequently
present themselves. Now, most Christians are
content to seek in this practice, only the exemption
from the penalty due to their sins, without any
other motive than their own self-interest, and this
prevents them from gaining them in a perfect
manner, and from glorifying God by this means
according to His purpose. It is, therefore, useful
that you should propose to yourself the intentions
and dispositions you should have, in order to gain
indulgences in a perfect manner and for the pure
glory of God.

i. Adore the great love which leads God to
accord you the favour of Indulgences. The great
love which God has for us inspires in Him a very
great longing to have us wholly His ; and as He
knows that the punishment, which we have

What We should Do each Week 183

merited on account of our sins, will delay the
accomplishment of this desire by keeping us in
Purgatory, if they are not expiated in this life,
He accords us Indulgences, which is the shortest
and easiest. way of expiating them. Offer yourself,
therefore, to Him in order to gain them, not so
much from self-interest, as in order to fulfil His
desire. Do all that is prescribed for gaining them,
in honour of, and in union with, the most pure
love which impels God to grant them to you.

2. Adore the deep love of Jesus which led Him
to acquire for you these Indulgences ; you should
look upon them as one of the fruits of the Cross
and Passion of Jesus, and as something which has
cost Him dear, for He acquired them at the cost of
His Blood and His death. It is for this reason
you must desire to gain them, so that the Son of
God may not be deprived of the fruit and of the
effects of His Cross, and so that a benefit which
cost Him so dear may not be lost, and may not be
vain and useless to you.

3. Adore the divine Justice, to which you are a
debtor for the penalty due to your sins, and desire
to gain Indulgences, not so much that you may
be freed from this penalty, as that the Justice of
God may be satisfied and glorified by this means.

4. It is well, too, to adore all the purposes which
God has with regard to our souls from all eternity.
For God has purposed, from all eternity, to estab-
lish us in a high state of grace on earth, and of
glory in Heaven. But we have put many obstacles
in the way of the accomplishment of His purpose,
by our sins. No doubt these sins are pardoned as
regards their guilt, but we have made ourselves
unworthy of receiving many graces which God
would have accorded us, if we had not thus hindered

1 84 The Reign of Jesus

His purpose. Now He desires, by means of
Indulgences, to wipe out this unworthiness and to
take away these obstacles to His purpose which
sin has placed in our souls. He desires to put us
into a fit state for receiving these graces, which
He longs to bestow on us, in order thus to accom-
plish His purposes. Let us therefore desire to gain
Indulgences, not so much in order to be freed from
the pains of Purgatory, as in order that God may
not be deprived of the fulfilment of the purposes
which He deigns to form with respect to us.

5. Let us also desire to gain them, in order that
our souls, being entirely purified by means of
Indulgences, of the many unhappy consequences
which sin leaves in us, and which prevent our
loving God perfectly, we may love Him more
purely and more fervently. To this end, when an
opportunity of gaining an Indulgence presents
itself, let us say to the Son of God :

" O Jesus, I give myself to Thee, to do all Thou
desirest me to do in order to gain this Indulgence,
in honour of, and in union with, the infinite love
with which Thou hast acquired it for me by Thy
precious Blood. I desire to gain it, to do homage
to Thy divine Justice ; for the fulfilment of Thy
purposes in me ; and in order that I may love and
glorify Thee more perfectly."

Ill

WHAT WE SHOULD DO EACH MONTH
Fervour and Watchfulness.

" I will offer Thee a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving ' '
(Ps. cxv. 17).

"Simon, son of Jona, lovest thou Me? Yea, Lord,
Thou knowest that I love Thee " (S. John xxi. 16).

" Behold the Bridegroom cometh ; go ye out to meet
Him" (S. Matt. xxv. 6).

SUMMARY.

The Christian who desires to establish firmly in his
soul the reign of Jesus should set aside a few days each
month to devote himself to —

1. The exercise of the praise of Jesus ;

2. The exercise of the love of Jesus ;

3. The preparation for death ;

and he should also choose a Saint who will help him to
love Jesus, and who will love Jesus with him and for him.

EXPLANATION.

This is the use one may make of these exercises :
1. As a Means of Glorification. — The exercise of praise
is the glorification of the greatness of Jesus. The exercise
of love is the glorification of the love of Jesus. The
exercise of preparation for death is the glorification of
the divine Justice. One may with advantage make use
of these exercises on the first Friday of each month, on
the day of the monthly retreat, during the holy hour on
Thursday evening, during the hour which the priestly
worshippers have to pass each week before the Blessed
Sacrament.

2. As a Stimulus to Devotion.— -The most generous souls
often feel weary in the practise of virtue, and, like Elias,
185

1 86 The Reign of Jesus

they allow themselves to slumber under the shade of a
tree by the roadside. But Jesus calls us ; He makes
vigilance our law. " I know thy works," He says to us,
" thy labour and thy patience, but I have against thee
that thou hast forsaken thy first love. Remember from
whence thou art fallen, do penance, and accomplish the
first works. If not, I come to thee, and will take away
thy candlestick " (Apoc. ii. 2-5).

Now, to reanimate one's fervour, it suffices to spend an
hour in face of death, or at the feet of Jesus, like Mag-
dalene, or, better still, leaning on His Heart, like St. John.

Let us have recourse, then, to these exercises as a remedy,
against the absorption in external things ; against the
nervous depression induced by overwork ; against the
spiritual disturbance caused by sickness ; against de-
spondency under trials.

3. As the Share of Jesus.— On our days of rest, during
our holiday sojourn in the country, in the mountains,
at the seaside, Jesus then addresses us, as He did His
Apostles, with this sweet invitation : " Come into a
desert place apart with Me, and rest awhile " (S. Mark
vi. 31).

Souls who have tasted the sweetness of these exercises,
and who have experienced their efficacity, will know how
to find for them a place each month in their life's pro-
gramme.

THE EXERCISES OF EACH MONTH.

The first and last days of each month should
be of very great importance to us. We should
look upon the first, as if it were the first of our
life, and form a fresh desire, and make a new
resolution to serve and love God perfectly, during
its course, to employ it in His service and for His
glory, and to behave as if it were the last month
of our life.

We should also look upon, and employ, the last
day as we should wish to employ the last day of
our life.

It is well to choose one of these two days, or

What We should Do each Month 187

some other one, to make a retreat, that we may
renew and deepen our religious feelings, our good
desires and the resolutions made during the annual
retreat ; that we may make reparation for our
failures during the month, in the service and in
the love of God ; that we may strive to perform
our actions with more attention and more per-
fection than usual ; and that we may employ this
day with more care and more fervour in the
exercise of the praise and of the love of Jesus.

To help you, I offer you three exercises — an
exercise of praise, an exercise of love, and a pre-
paration for death.

I. Exercise of Praise.*

1. Consider that Jesus is infinitely worthy of
all praise, glory, and blessing, and this for an
infinity of reasons. For He merits infinite praise
for all He is, and for all He does, with regard to
His eternal Father, Whom He glorifies and loves,
infinitely and continuously, from all eternity ; for all
He is in Himself — in His Divinity, in all His divine
perfections, in His divine Person, in His sacred
Humanity, in His Body and in His Soul ; in all
His states and mysteries ; in all His qualities and
functions ; in all His words, thoughts, actions,
and sufferings ; in all His virtues ; in all that is in
Him — of which the least part is so worthy of praise,
that if all the Saints and Angels were occupied
throughout all eternity in praising and glorifying
it, with all their strength, they would not be able
to render it the glory it deserves.

Further, He merits eternal praise for all He is,

* Cf. " All for Jesus," chap, viii., " Le Livre des
Exercices de Ste. Gertrude."

i 88 The Reign of Jesus

and all He has done, with regard to His Holy
Spirit, to His blessed Mother, to all His Angels,
to all His Saints, to all mankind, to all Christians,
and to all creatures on earth and even in hell.
For He merits no less praise for the effects of His
justice, than for the effects of His mercy, all in
Him being equally holy and adorable. Oh ! how
many are the reasons for blessing and glorifying
this most adorable and most love-worthy Jesus !
But bear in mind that you should be much more
inclined to praise and love Him, for what He is
and does, with regard to His Father, to Himself,
and to His Holy Spirit, than for all He is and for
all He does, for you and for other creatures ;
because the interests of God should be infinitely
dearer to us than our own.

2. Consider that you are in the world, solely
for the purpose of glorifying and loving Jesus on
account of all the graces He has bestowed on you.
Therefore this should be your principal- — even your
sole occupation ; your whole life should be a con-
tinual exercise of love and glorification of this
same Jesus ; all your thoughts, words, actions,
and affections should tend to that ; all your time,
and all the powers of your soul and of your body
should be employed to that end. Nevertheless,
instead of having loved and glorified Him, you
have scarcely done aught else, in all your life, than
offend Him, in thought, word, and action, with all
the members of your body, and all the faculties
of your soul. Humble yourself profoundly before
Him, and ask His forgiveness ; desire earnestly
to make reparation for all these faults, and to devote
yourself in future to loving and glorifying Him
perfectly.
3. Pass your life in review, and examine your

What We should Do each Month 189

actions, all your conduct, and consider what there
is in you — whether in your body or in your soul —
which is a hindrance to the love and glory of
Jesus, and make a firm resolution to fight against
it, and to destroy it, cost what it may. Offer
yourself also to this same Jesus, beseeching Him
Himself to destroy these hindrances, by the power
of His grace and of His divine Love.

4. Then employ all the powers of your soul
and the energy of your heart in praising and
glorifying this divine Saviour.

5. Unite yourself to the praise which Jesus
receives in Heaven from His eternal Father, from
His Holy Spirit, from His blessed Mother, from
the Seraphim, from the Cherubim, from the
Thrones, Dominations, Virtues, Powers, Princi-
palities, from the Archangels and Angels, from the
Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs, Priests,
Confessors, Virgins, Widows, from children dying
directly after Baptism, from all the elect.

6. Unite yourself to all the praise which is
rendered to Jesus by the Saints on earth ; offer
your praise,, in place of that which sinners refuse
Him ; lend your voice and your heart to all the
creatures, whose king and priest you are.

Elevation.

O most adorable Jesus, O most worthy of
honour ! as Thou art so full of greatness and of
perfections, which render Thee worthy of infinite
praise ; and as I am in the world solely for the
purpose of glorifying Thee ; I desire now to employ
all the powers of my body and of my soul in
blessing Thee, and I beseech Thine eternal Father,
Thy Holy Spirit, Thy blessed Mother, Thine

190 The Reign of Jesus

Angels, Thy Saints, and all creatures in Heaven
and earth, to bless Thee with me : for all Thou
art with regard to Thy Heavenly Father, to Thy-
self, to Thy blessed Mother, to all Thy Angels,
to all Thy Saints, to all mankind, to all Christians,
to me in particular, and to all created things.

0 Jesus, O sovereign Greatness ! Thy Divinity '
is everywhere, Thou fillest Heaven, earth, and
even hell itself, with the immensity of Thy divine
Majesty ! As, O my Saviour, Thou art thus
everywhere, and as Thou dost merit to be praised
everywhere, so I do desire to praise Thee every-
where.

1. In Hell. — I desire to go down, in spirit, into
Hell, and there, in the midst of Thine enemies,
and in spite of the hatred and rage which they
have for Thee ; in union with the very great love
which Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit bear Thee
in this place ; I adore Thee, I bless Thee with my
whole heart, O my Lord Jesus, for all Thou art
in Thyself and in all things, even for all the effects
of Thy justice exercised upon the devils and the
damned.

0 adorable Jesus, would that I possessed (in
my sole person) the power and the capacity for
loving and glorifying Thee, which formerly these
unhappy ones possessed, and which they have
lost by their wickedness, so that I might use it to
praise and love Thee.

1 desire also to go down in spirit into hell and
put myself in that place, which Thou knowest,
O my God, that I have merited by my sins, and
where I should actually be, hadst Thou, by Thy
mercy, not delivered me. From that place, I
desire to adore and to love Thee, O my sovereign
Judge, I desire to adore, love, and glorify Thee, in

What We should Do each Month 191

all the effects of the justice Thou wouldest have
exercised on me eternally, if Thy mercy had not
had compassion on my misery.

2. In Purgatory. — Having thus adored and
blessed Thee in hell, O most love-worthy Jesus,
I desire to pass into Purgatory in order there, in
like manner, to adore, love, and glorify Thee,
in all the effects of Thy justice exercised there,
and even in that justice which Thou wilt one day
exercise on me, when I shall be in this place of
expiation. I desire also to unite myself to all the
love, to all the glory, which have been, and will be,
offered to Thee there.

3. On Earth. — From Purgatory, I pass into
this visible world, where I desire to bless and exalt
Thee, O Jesus, sovereign Lord of the world.

(1) In the Name oj all Insensible Creatures. —
They praise and exalt Thee continually according
to the extent and power of their being ; more
than this, their entire being is but a praising and
glorifying of Thee. Oh, how do I rejoice, my
Creator, to see Thee unceasingly glorified by all
Thy creatures ! What a lesson do they teach me,
of the glory I should offer to Thy Majesty ! O
Lord, permit me to unite myself to all the praise
and blessing, offered Thee by all Thy creatures.

(2) In the Name 0] the Wicked. — How many men,
O good Jesus, live on the earth without knowing
or loving Thee, and who are beginning to do on
earth, what the damned are doing in hell — that
is to say, to dishonour and offend Thee continually.
Let me, O my Jesus, with the help of Thy grace,
supply what is lacking in them ! Let me love and
bless Thee in their stead, for all the favours Thou
hast bestowed on them, and for which they feel
no gratitude.

192 The Reign of Jesus

(3) With the Righteous. — O Jesus, many souls
living in the world, or in religious communities,
employ themselves in praising Thee unceasingly,
with such affection, that no hour or minute of the
day or night passes without glory and praise
being offered to Thee by them. This thought
fills me with an infinite joy, O my God, and I
desire, if it be Thy pleasure, to unite myself to
all the praise which has been, is, and shall be
offered to Thee on earth, by these souls which
belong to Thee.

4. In Heaven — If I raise myself to Heaven,
there I behold Thine eternal Father, Thy Holy
Spirit, Thy blessed Mother, with the many
millions of Seraphim, of Cherubim, of Thrones, of
Dominations, of Virtues, of Powers, of Princi-
palities, of Archangels, of Angels, of Patriarchs,
of Prophets, of Apostles, of Martyrs, of Priests, of
Confessors, of Virgins, of Widows, of Holy Inno-
cents, and of other Saints, ceaselessly employed
in loving, in glorifying Thee with all their strength,
and with the deepest love !

Ah, my beloved Jesus, what joy for me to see
Thee so loved and glorified ! I offer Thee all this
glory and praise.

O Father of Jesus, Holy Spirit of Jesus, Mother
of Jesus, Angels and Saints of Jesus, permit me
to unite myself to all the praise which you offer
to my Lord Jesus, and grant me to partake of the
love and devotion, of the purity and holiness, with
which you unceasingly praise Him, so that I
may praise Him with you, and that I may begin
to do here below, what I hope and long to do
eternally with you in Heaven.

O most divine Jesus, I rejoice infinitely that
Thou art so great and so perfect, and therefore

What We should Do each Month 193

so worthy of glory and praise that all created
things in Heaven and earth united cannot praise
Thee worthily ; for Thy deserving surpasseth
infinitely all the capacity of praise of Heaven and
earth, as saith the royal Prophet : " Confessio
ejus super ccelum et terram " (Ps. cxlviii. 14).
Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit alone render to
Thee a praise worthy of Thine infinite greatness.
All other praise than this, whether rendered to
Thee in Heaven or earth, is not worthy of Thee,
for it is finite, and Thou dost merit infinite
praise.

O Father of Jesus, O Holy Spirit of Jesus, how
can I render You fitting thanks for the glory
you give to my Lord Jesus Christ ? Assuredly,
even had I never received, nor were destined
to receive, any favour from You, yet would
I serve and love You everlastingly because of
the love and glory which You render to Him
Who is my all, and Whom I love more than
myself.

O Father of Jesus, O Holy Spirit of Jesus, I
beseech You with all my heart, by the great love
You bear to my Saviour, and the fervent zeal
You have for His glory, to atone for all my faults
of omission in praising Him, and to render Him
in my stead, a thousandfold all the glory I should
have rendered Him in all my life.

O good Jesus, I give myself to Thee, to praise
and glorify Thee in every way pleasing to Thee.
Grant that henceforth my whole life may be a
continual sacrifice of praise and blessing to Thee.
But give praise also to Thyself for me : " Bene-
dicite omnes virtutes Domini Domino (Dan.
hi. 61). "Let all virtues, that is to say, all the
forces and powers of Thy Divinity and of Thy

J3

1 94 The Reign of Jesus

Humanity, 0 Lord Jesus — be employed in blessing
Thee for me, and in exalting and glorifying Thee
unceasingly for ever."

II. Exercise of Love.

EXPLANATION.

The exercise of praise is drawn up in a perfect order.
The soul is invited to pass through Hell, Purgatory,
Earth, and Heaven, even to penetrate the sanctuary of
the Blessed Trinity, in order to gather up the homage
offered to Jesus, and to offer it in her own name. The
exercise of love is the admirable effusion of a heart in-
flamed with the sacred fire from Heaven, but it does not
present the same logical order ; consequently, it does not
point out to the soul the various ways for showing her
love to Jesus which she may find in herself. In order to
supply this omission, we give by way of a guide three
methods borrowed from the booklet entitled, " The Way
of Divine Love."

First Method.

This consists in taking possession, as it were, of all the
capacity for loving to be found in Heaven and on earth,
and making use of it.

" I love Thee," said S. Gertrude, " with all the capacity
of loving of the whole world " — " Ex affectu totius univer-
sitatis salutans amplexor te." One can thus invoke God,
the Saints, and Angels in a kind of litany, not to beg them
to have pity on us or to intercede for us, but to ask them
for the love of their heart in order to love our adorable
Jesus.

O Eternal Father, give me Thy love, that I may love
Jesus as Thou lovest Him !

O Mary, give me thy immaculate heart, that I may love
Jesus as thou lovest Him !

O Seraphim, ardent furnaces of holy love, give me your
hearts, that I may love Jesus as you love Him !

One can also appeal in turn to all the hierarchies of
Angels and Saints, come down to earth, and offer to our
dear Master all the love which is to be found in the hearts
of Pontiffs, of consecrated virgins, of the faithful.

What We should Do each Month 195

We can go also to the gate of Purgatory and borrow
the generous ardour of those souls who love their God
and long for Him in the midst of their great suffering.

There are even souls who are drawn to love God in the
stead of the devils and the damned. They ask for the
flames of divine love which should consume these hearts,
for ever now a prey to hate.

Second Method.

A second way consists in producing repeated acts in
accordance with the seven kinds of Divine love.

An act of love is always the gift of oneself, but as in
God there are many attributes, one may consider them
each in turn, and thus find many ways of reaching God,
and many ways, also, of giving oneself to Him.

1. Love of Adoration. — God appears to us as the
sovereign Master, author of life and death. In His
presence we desire to be reduced to nothingness, like the
incense which smokes on the red ashes ; like the candle
which burns before the altar ; like the victim which is
slain at the moment of sacrifice.

2. Love of Benevolence. — God appears to us as the Object
of all life, of all mind, of all hearts, of all acts. We should
desire, therefore, to have at our disposition all hearts, all
wills, all created things, in order to consecrate them wholly
to Him. To Him be all honour, all glory, all love, in
Heaven and on earth !

3. Love of Preference. — God appears as the King, the
Master. Thus we make a comparison between Him and
all those who are dear to us, so as to love Him more than
a father, more than a mother, more than a spouse, more
than the Angels, more than the Virgin Mary.

4. Love of Complacency. — God appears to us in His
adorable perfections, in His goodness, in His love, and we
lean on Him above all others.

5. Love of Condolence. — God is offended, crucified, out-
raged, in the Sacrament of His love. We desire to show
compassion for His suffering, to console Him, to make
amends.

6. Love of Gratitude. — God appears to us as our Bene-
factor, to Whom we owe everything. Thus the Deo
gratias springs from the heart like an echo of sincere
gratitude.

7. Love of Desire. — God appears to us as the source of

196 The Reign of Jesus

all good — our supreme Good. Then our heart goes out
to Him in a longing to grasp Him, to possess Him, to bear
Him away with us as Magdalene desired to do at the
sepulchre.

Third Method.

This consists in producing acts of love with regard, above
all, to our capacity for loving.

With all our heart, with all there is in us capable of loving.

With all our mind, with all the light with which our
intelligence is gifted.

With all our soul, with all its faculties, which we desire
to devote to the service of God.

With all our strength, with all the resources of our
activity in the state in which Providence has placed us.

The Blessed Marguerite-Marie desired to be nothing
but a capacity for loving. This should be our motto :

To love only Jesus, to take pleasure only in Jesus, to
long only for Jesus, to rest only in Jesus, to feed only on
Jesus, to be content only with Jesus.

The Importance of Acts of Love.

Amongst all the duties and pious exercises of
a soul which is truly Christian, the noblest, holiest,
most exalted, and that which God doth chiefly
demand of us, is the exercise of divine love. It
is for this reason, that you should be very careful,
in all your pious exercises and in all your actions,
to protest to our Lord Jesus Christ that you desire-
to perform them, not from fear of hell, nor to
obtain the reward of Paradise, nor to earn merit
for yourself, nor for your own satisfaction and
consolation ; but solely for love of Him, for His
contentment, for His glory, and for His most
pure love.

So also you should often give yourself up to
the exercise of this divine love. It is the greatest,
holiest, of occupations, the most worthy of Angels
and Saints, of God Himself, throughout eternity.

What We should Do each Month 197

Acts of Love.

1. The one necessary Act. — O Jesus, my Lord,
Thou art infinitely worthy of love. It sumceth
me, my God, that I possess this knowledge.
What need have I of so much science, enlighten-
ment, and knowledge ? Enough for me to know
that my Jesus is all love-worthy and that there is
naught in Him which is not worthy of infinite
love. Let my mind, then, be content with this
knowledge ; but let my heart never tire of loving
Him Who never can be loved enough.

2. The Precept of Love. — Alas ! it is true, I
know only too well, my Saviour, that this my
heart, so weak and so imperfect, is not worthy to
love Thee. But Thou art most worthy of love,
and Thou hast created this poor heart solely that
it may love Thee ; Thou dost even command it
to love Thee under penalty of death — of everlast-
ing death. Ah ! God of my heart, there is no
need of command ; it is what I wish ; it is what I
desire ; it is for that my heart longs. Yea, my
Jesus, I desire ardently to love Thee. Yea, my
dear Jesus, I wish, henceforward, to have no
other desire. Adieu, all other thought, all other
longing, all other will. I wish, I desire, but one
thing alone ; I have henceforth but one longing —
the longing to love Jesus, the love and delight of
Heaven and earth. Ah ! Jesus, my sweet Jesus,
what do I desire on earth ? No other thing, my
All, but to love Thee.

3. The Measure of Love. — O most love-worthy
Jesus, assuredly I desire to love Thee ; but I
desire to love Thee, not alone with the power of
my too feeble will, but with the utmost strength

198 The Reign of Jesus

of Thy divine Will — which is mine, for Thou hast
given Thyself wholly to me. So also do I desire
to love Thee with all the wills of men and Angels,
which are also mine, for in giving Thyself to me,
Thou hast also given me all other things. Ah,
Lord, would to God that I were all transformed
into desire and longing, that I might the more
desire and will to love Thee !

4. The one Need of the Heart. — O Desire of my
heart, hear and grant my prayer, I beseech Thee ;
give ear to the longing of my heart, and have
pity on me. Oh, Thou knowest, Lord, that
which I have to ask of Thee ; my heart has so
often revealed it to Thee. I ask for no less a
thing than the perfection of Thy holy love. I
desire naught, save to love Thee, and that this
desire may increase ever more and more in me.
O Object of my desire, increase in me this longing
to love Thee, which Thou hast bestowed on me !
But increase it so greatly, render it so powerful
and so ardent, that, henceforth, I may be consumed
unceasingly with the desire of Thy love.

5. The Holy Passion of Divine Love. — O most
love-worthy and desirable Jesus, kindle in my soul
a thirst so ardent, a hunger so keen, of Thy holy
love, that it may be to me a ceaseless martyrdom
not to love Thee -enough, and that nothing in
this world may afflict me save the fact that I love
Thee too little.

6. The Desires of Perfect Love. — O good
Jesus, who would not love Thee ? Who would
not desire to love, ever more and more, Goodness
so love-worthy ? My God, my Life, my All, I
cannot enough protest that I desire to love Thee
with all the perfection of which I am capable, and
that, were it possible, I would for this end, that

What We should Do each Month 199

my mind were all desire, my soul all longing, my
heart all sighs, and my life all languor.

7. The Obstacles to Love. — O King of my
heart, have pity on my misery, I beseech Thee !
Thou knowest that I desire to love Thee ; but,
alas ! Thou knowest how many things there are
in me contrary to Thy love. The innumerable
multitude of my sins, my self-will, my self-love,
my pride, and all my other vices and imperfections
prevent me from loving Thee perfectly. Oh !
how I detest and loathe all these things which
oppose the desire which I have to love Thee !
My God, what must I do to destroy them ? For
behold me, ready to do all, and suffer all it
shall please Thee for this end. O Lord, if it
were permitted to tear myself to pieces, to reduce
myself to dust and ashes, to destroy myself
utterly in order to destroy in me all that is
opposed to Thy love, how willingly would I do
so with the help of Thy grace ! But do Thou,
my Saviour, I beseech Thee, Thyself accomplish
this work. By the strength of Thine arm destroy
in my soul all the enemies of Thy love.

8. The Destruction of Obstacles. — O Jesus, there
is nothing in Thee which is not all love, and love
for me ; and while I should be all love for Thee,
there is nothing in me, that is mine, which is not
contrary to Thy love. Oh, what suffering !
Oh, what anguish ! how can I endure myself ?
O Love divine, where art Thou ? Where is
Thy might ? Where is the strength of Thine
arm ? O consuming and devouring Flame,
where is Thy celestial ardour ? Why dost Thou
not consume me wholly, all in me being so opposed
to Thee ? Why dost Thou not destroy utterly
in me this malicious and sinful life, that Thou

2oo The Reign of Jesus

mayst establish in me Thy life most holy and
divine ?

9. The Conquest of Love. — O almighty Love,
I yield myself up to Thy sacred power. Come,
oh, come, I beseech Thee, into my heart to destroy
all that is displeasing to Thee, and to establish
in me Thy heavenly reign. If suffering may
suffice to bring about this end, I offer myself to
Thee, with all my heart, to suffer all the torments,
all the martyrdoms, which have ever been, or
ever will be, endured in this world. Spare me
not, therefore, O Love. Naught care I, so I may
be delivered from all in me that is displeasing
to my Saviour ; for I desire to love my Jesus. I
desire, at whatever cost, to love Him perfectly.

10. Love for Love. — O God of love, Thou art
wholly love-worthy, wholly loving and wholly
Love — and Love for me. Oh, may I also be all
love for Thee ! May heaven and earth be trans-
formed into a pure name of love for Thee !

11. All Sacrificed to Love. — Oh, my sweet Love,
what, henceforth, shall hinder me from loving Thee,
now that I know Thine immense goodness ? Shall
my body ? I will rather reduce it to dust. Shall
my past sins ? O good Jesus, I plunge them all
in the tide of Thy precious Blood. Lo ! I offer
Thee, too, my body and my soul; inflict what
suffering it shall please Thee in order to wipe
away my sins so that they may not hinder me
from loving Thee. What then ? Shall the world,
or any created thing ? No, no ; I renounce, with
my whole strength, all affection of the senses for
created things. I consecrate my heart and all
my affections to Jesus, my Creator and my God.
And, as for thee, O World, henceforward, I attach
no more importance to thy praise, thy blame,

What We should Do each Month 201

thy pleasures, and thy vanities, to all that thou
esteemest and holdest most dear, than to a dream
that passeth, or to the smoke that the wind beareth
away. I hold, henceforth, in horror, thy spirit,
thy conduct, thy sentiments, and thy hellish
principles ; I will hate and persecute thy malice
as thou dost hate and persecute the goodness of
my Lord Jesus Christ.

Farewell, then, O World, once more; farewell,
all that is not God. Jesus shall, henceforth, be
my world, my glory, my treasure, my joy, my
All. Henceforth, I will see naught but Jesus ;
my eyes are closed to all save Him, Who alone is
worthy of contemplation. I desire, henceforward,
to please Jesus only ; I desire a heart and affections
for Him alone ; I desire to rejoice solely in His
love and in the fulfilment of His amiable will ;
I will grieve for naught, save for what offends
Him, and for what is contrary to His divine love.
O love, O love ! Death or love, or, rather,
death and love ! Death to all that is not Jesus ;
love, sole, and sovereign love for Jesus !

12. Love is our Supreme Object. — O King of my
love, Thou hast placed me in the world, solely
that I may love Thee. Oh, how noble, how holy
how exalted is this end for which Thou hast,
created me ! Oh, what an honour for thee,
poor heart of mine, to be created for the same
purpose as that of God Who created thee, and to
share unceasingly in the same most divine em-
ployment ! This great God exists only to con-
template and love Himself ; thou too wast created
solely to love Him Who made thee, to bless and
love Him eternally. Blessed and loved for ever
be the King of all hearts, Who has given me a
heart capable of loving Him !

202 The Reign of Jesus

O God of my heart, as Thou hast created me
solely that I may love Thee, permit me not to
live, if it be not to love Thee and to increase ever
in Thy love. Either death or love ! No life
save to love Thee, my God, and a thousand deaths
rather than lose Thy love !

13. Love should be the Occupation 0} our Life. —

0 divine Love, be Thou the life of my life, the
soul of my soul, the heart of my heart. Let me,
henceforth, live only in Thee and by Thee. Let
me think no thought, and speak no word, and per-
form no action, save by Thee and for Thee.

14. Love of Preference. — O only Love of my
heart, Thou alone art worthy of love. All that
is not Thou, is but nothingness, unworthy of
notice. It is Thou alone, therefore, Whom I long
for, Thou alone Whom I seek, Thou alone Whom I
desire to love. Thou art my All ; all else is naught
to me, and I desire to see and love naught save
in Thee and for Thee ; or, rather, I desire to see
and love naught save Thee in all things.

O my beloved Jesus, Thou art the closest of
my friends, my one and only friend. Thou art
my Brother, my Father, my Spouse, and my
Head. Thou art all mine, and I desire to be all
Thine — all Thine for ever.

15. Sovereign Love. — O Jesus, Who alone art
love-worthy, Who alone art loving, Who alone
art loved by all hearts in Heaven ; grant, not only
that I may love Thee above all things, but that

1 may love Thee only in all things, and that if I
love aught, I may love it only in Thee and for
Thee.

16. The Sole Love. — O only Love of my heart !
O sole Object of my love ! There is naught in
Heaven or earth worthy of love save Thee. Alas !

What We should Do each Month 203

when will the day come when men shall seek and
love naught else but Thee in Heaven and earth ?

17. Love oj Desire. — O Jesus, O my only Love,
separate me wholly from myself and from all
things ; draw me to Thee ; absorb me into Thee ;
take possession of me so entirely and so absolutely
that naught else may share with Thee my mind
and my heart.

18. Love oj Condolence. — 0 my sweet Jesus, how
love- worthy Thou art, and how little art Thou
loved ! The world nor thinks of Thee nor loves
Thee. It seeks but to offend Thee and to persecute
those that love Thee. Grant me, in its stead, to
seek naught but Thee and how to love Thee.
Oh, would that I could love Thee in my own
person as much as the whole world should love
Thee!

19. Love oj Reparation.- — O eternal Son of the
eternal Father, Who art all love-worthy, all loving,
and all love : from all eternity Thou hast loved me,
and for this reason, had I existed from all eternity
I ought to have loved Thee from all eternity.
But this not being so, at least I ought to have
loved Thee from the first moment that I had the
use of my reason. But alas ! I began very late to
love Thee, and even now I dare not affirm that I
have begun to love Thee as I ought. O eternal
God, Thou hast never passed a moment without
loving me, throughout all the duration of Thine
eternity, and I know not whether I have yet
employed a single moment of my life in loving
Thee as I ought ; but well do I know that I have
never passed a single day without offending Thee.
Ah ! what anguish, what torture for my soul,
Lord ! I cannot endure myself when I think of
it. At this thought, O my heart, thou shouldst

204 The Reign of Jesus

break with grief ! At this thought, O mine eyes,
you should melt into tears ! Ah, why am I not
transformed into a sea of tears, and of tears of
blood, in order to lament and wipe away my foul
ingratitude towards Love so great ! 0 Love, O
Love, let there be no more ingratitude, no more
offence, no more sin, no more infidelity, nothing
but love.

20. Love of Complacency. — 0 eternal Love, Thou
art loved from all eternity by Thine eternal Father
and by Thy Holy Spirit. I rejoice infinitely that
Thou art thus loved, and I unite myself to this
love. I plunge, I lose myself in the abyss of this
love which Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit bear
Thee from all eternity.

21. Love Everlasting. — 0 eternal Beauty, O
eternal Goodness, had I an eternity of life to live
on earth, I ought yet to spend it entirely in loving
Thee. How much more, then, should I thus
spend the short span of life which remains to me !
Ah, my Lord, I devote it all to Thy holy love !
Grant that I may live only to love Thee, and that
no moment of my life may pass otherwise than in
Thy divine love. Either death or love. But
above all, grant me to love Thee throughout
eternity. Happen what may, I unite myself, from
this moment, to all the love which shall be borne
Thee to all eternity.

O Eternity of Love, my sweet Jesus, burn,
destroy, reduce me to dust, make me to suffer all
it shall please Thee in this world, so that I may
love Thee eternally.

22. The Life of Love. — O King of ages and of
time, O Beloved of my soul, Who hast bought
at the cost of Thy Blood, all the minutes of my
time and of my life that I may employ them in

What We should Do each Month 205

loving Thee. Alas ! too many, far too many, have
been given to the love of myself, of the world, and
of created things. Too much has been lost of a
time which has cost Thee so dear, and which should
be so precious to me, for I need it for an occupation
so important as that of Thy divine love. It is
time, 0 Jesus, it is time I began to busy myself,
with all my strength, in the holy exercises of Thy
sacred love. Let me have no more of time or life
save for loving Thee ! Let me act as though there
were but Thee and me in all the world. Let me
do naught else but think of Thee and converse
with Thee, heart with heart, spirit with spirit.
Let nothing affect or interest me of all that happens
in the world, save the one care and the one desire
of loving Thee. O Jesus, increase so greatly in
me this desire, render it so strong, so ardent, that
it may be, not merely a desire, but an unceasing
craving. Grant me to reach out ever towards
Thee ; to draw ever nearer to Thee ; to sigh and
languish day and night for Thee. 0 Jesus ! O
Jesus ! only Love of my heart, when shall I be
wholly changed into a pure flame of love for
Thee?

23. Love of Benevolence. — 0 immense Love, 0
my God, Thou fillest Heaven and earth ; Thou art
in all places and in all things. Thou art all love-
worthy and all love. In all places Thou dost
infinitely love Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit,
and Thou art infinitely loved by Them ; so also
Thou loves t me in all places and in all things.
Grant me, too, to love Thee in all places and in all
things, and to love all things in Thee and for Thee.
To this end I unite and give myself to Thy divine
immensity, and in virtue of this divine immensity
I reach out my spirit and my will into all places

206 The Reign of Jesus

and all parts of the world ; and there, in the power
and immense extent of Thy Spirit and of Thy love,
I love Thee, glorify Thee, and adore Thee infinitely.
I unite myself also to all the love which Thy
Father and Thy Holy Spirit bear Thee in all places,
and in all the created beings, in Heaven, on earth,
and even in hell.

24. Love of Complacency. — O infinite Goodness,
it would need an infinite love to love Thee worthily.
Ah, what joy for my soul, what content for my
heart, it is to know that Thou art so good, O my
Jesus, so perfect, so love-worthy, that all creatures
in Heaven and on earth, even though they should
employ their whole strength throughout all
eternity in loving Thee, could not love Thee enough ;
and that none else, save Thyself, with Thy Father
and Thy Holy Spirit, are capable of loving Thee
worthily.

25. To love Jesus with all our Strength. — O
infinite Goodness, had I all the hearts, and all the
capacity of loving, of all mankind and of the Angels ;
if I had an infinite number of hearts or an infinite
capacity for loving, I ought to employ all in loving
Him Who is infinitely love-worthy, and Who
employs all the springs of His wisdom, of His
power, of His goodness, and of His other divine
perfections in loving me, and in accomplishing
such wonders for love of me. Under how great
an obligation am I, then, of thus employing the
little power I have. I desire, therefore, O my sweet
Jesus, to wear out, and consume, all the strength
of my body and of my soul, in loving Thee. But
this is still too little, I desire to gather up, in mine
own person, all the power of Heaven and earth —
which belongs to me, for Thou hast given me
all tilings — and to employ it all in loving Thee ;

What We should Do each Month 207

I desire also to make use of all the power of Thy
Divinity and of Thy Humanity — which are also
mine, for Thou hast given me Thyself.

I love Thee, then, O Jesus, I love Thee with all
my strength — that is, with all the strength of my
body and of my soul, with all the strength of all
creatures in Heaven and on earth, and with all the
power of Thy Divinity and of Thy Humanity.

26. Jesus loves Himself in Us. — But what can I
do, my God ? I am not worthy to love Thee ; it
is for Thee alone to accomplish a duty — so holy
and so divine. For this reason, I cast myself at
Thy feet, conscious of my nothingness. I give
myself wholly to Thee ; annihilate me by the
virtue of that most powerful love, which abased
Thee to the level of our nothingness ; establish
Thyself in me that Thou mayest therein love
Thyself with a love worthy of Thee ; and that I
may love Thee henceforth — not of myself, nor
with mine own strength, nor with mine own love,
but by Thee, and by the power of Thy Spirit and
of Thy love.

27. Prayer to Obtain the Love of Jesus. — O most
love-worthy Jesus, Thou dost assure us in Thy Holy
Word that Thy Father loves us as He loves Thee,
and that Thou lovest us as Thy Father loves Thee —
that is to say, with the same heart and the same
love wherewith He loves Thee. Thou dost com-
mand us also to love Thee as Thou lovest Thy
Father, and to dwell ever in Thy love as Thou
dwellest ever in Thy Father's love. But, Lord,
Thou knowest my powerlessness and my incapacity
for loving Thee. Give me, therefore, O my God,
give me, I beseech Thee, that which Thou com-
mandest, and then command me what Thou wilt.
Destroy in me mine own heart and my self-love, and

208 The Reign of Jesus

give me Thy heart and Thy love — which is no
other than Thy Father's — that I may love Thee,
henceforth, as Thou loves t Thy Father and as Thy
Father loves Thee ; that I may dwell ever in Thy
love, as Thou dwellest ever in Thy Father's love ;
and that I may perform all my actions by the
virtue and guidance of Thy love. Yea, my Jesus, it
is with this eternal love, infinite and immense, with
which Thy Father loves Thee, and with which
Thou lovest the Father from all eternity, that I
desire henceforth to love Thee, and that I desire
to perform all my actions. It is this infinite love
of Thy heart, and this immense Heart overflowing
with love, that I desire to offer Thee, and which I
do offer Thee as belonging to me, as mine own
heart and mine own love, for Thou hast given it
to me in giving me Thyself. I offer Thee also the
beloved heart of Thy blessed Mother — the most
love-worthy, the best beloved, and the most loving,
of all the hearts that adore Thine. I offer Thee
also all the hearts and all the divine love in
Heaven and earth as mine, for Thine Apostle
teaches me that Thy Father, in giving Thee to us,
hath with Thee given us all things.

28. Love of Jesus by Jesus Himself. — 0 Jesus,
Thou art most pure, Thou art purity itself, and
Thou lovest me with a most pure love ; I desire
also to love Thee with a love as pure as is possible
to me. For this reason I desire to love Thee in
Thyself — that is to say, with Thine own most pure
love. I desire to love naught else but Thee, and
I desire to love Thee for Thine own sake and for
Thy contentment alone. I love Thee, then, O my
dearest Jesus, I love Thee with the most pure love
wherewith Thou lovest Thyself, and wherewith
Thy Father, Thy Holy Spirit, Thy blessed Mother,

What We should Do each Month 209

and Thy Angels and Thy Saints love Thee. O
Father of Jesus, O Holy Spirit of Jesus, love my
Saviour for me, and supply thus all that is deficient
in my love. 0 Mother of Jesus, Angels of Jesus,
Saints of Jesus, O all ye creatures of Jesus, come
to my aid, help me to love your Creator and mine.
Come, let us unite in love to this most love- worthy
Lord, let us employ and consume our whole being
and all our powers in loving Him Who hath created
us for His love.

29. Disinterested Love. — Ah ! Beloved of my
heart and cherished Object of my love : alas ! it is
a misfortune most lamentable, worthy to be
mourned with tears of blood, to see Thee so little
loved, even by the greater number of those who
profess to love Thee.

How strange a thing ! Naught so love-worthy
as Thou, and it would seem that there is naught in
the whole world so little loved as Thou. Many
can be found who love Thy Paradise, who love the
sweetness of Thy grace and the consolations of
Thy love. But alas ! in a thousand, hardly may one
find one who loves Thee purely for Thine own sake.

0 Jesus, 0 my pure Love, it is Thou alone whom

1 seek, Thou alone whom I desire, Thou alone
whom I desire to love. And I desire to love
Thee, not from self-interest and for my own
content, nor because it is a sweet and consoling
thing to love Thee, but because Thou art most
worthy of love for Thine own sake.

30. Jesus alone sufficeth Me. — Oh ! when shall I
love so entirely that I may be able to say with
truth : My Jesus is my All, and all else is naught
to me ; He alone sufficeth me, and I desire naught
else but Him alone ; and I desire it, not for my
own sake, but for His. No, no, it is not the joys

14

210 The Reign of Jesus

of Paradise, nor the consolations of a heavenly
love that I seek, but it is the Lord of Paradise and
the God of consolations that I love.

31. The Stimulus oj Love. — O God of my life and
of my heart, Thou art ever in the continual exercise
of love to me. Thou employest all that is in
Thee, and all that Thou hast created in Heaven
and on earth, in order to prove Thy love to me.
For this reason one of Thy most loving Saints
teaches me that Heaven and earth, and all that
is therein, do unceasingly call upon me to love the
Lord my God.* Thus, all things visible and in-
visible which are contained in the order of Nature,
of grace or of glory ; all graces temporal and
eternal which I have received at Thy hands, O
my God ; all Thy Angels and Saints, all the good
examples they have left us by their virtues and
their holy actions ; all the marvels Thou hast
wrought in Thy blessed Mother ; all the perfections
of Thy divine Essence and Person ; all the states
and mysteries of Thy Divinity and Thy Humanity ;
all Thy qualities and virtues, all Thy thoughts,
words, actions, and sufferings ; all the steps Thou
hast taken on earth, every drop of blood Thou
hast shed ; all the wounds Thou hast suffered in
Thy Body ; in a word, all things which have been,
and which are, in all beings create and uncreate,
in time and in eternity — all these things, I say,
are so many voices, 0 my Jesus, by which Thou
dost preach to me unceasingly Thy goodness and
Thy love for me. They are so many tongues with
which Thou dost incessantly protest that Thou
loves t me, and dost invite me to love Thee in

* " Coelum, terra et omnia quae in eis sunt, non cessant
mihi dicere, ut amen Dominum Deum meum." — S.
Augustine, "Manuale," chap. xxiv.

What We should Do each Month 2 1 1

return ; so many voices by which Thou sayest
to me perpetually : " Amo te, amo te ; dilige me
quia ipse prior dilexite. Dilige Dominum Deum
tuum ex to to corde tuo, ex tota anima tua, et ex
totis viribus tuis "— ■ " I love thee, I love thee :
love Me Who first loved thee. Love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with
all thy strength/' Lastly, all these things are,
as it were, so many voices of preachers which cry
to me unceasingly : " Love, love for Jesus, Who is
all love for thee, and Who employeth all He is,
all He hath, all He can, all He knoweth, all He
doth, and all that dependeth on Him in Heaven
and earth, in order to make known to thee the
love He beareth thee, and to win thy heart and to
oblige thee to return His love."

O most merciful Saviour, graciously accept, I
beseech Thee, in Thy great mercy, the protesta-
tions which I make to Thee for the future. O
my most love-worthy Jesus, as Thou art ever in the
exercise of love for me, and dost employ all that
is in Thee in loving me, so I, too, propose to be
ever in the exercise of love for Thee, and to make
use of all things for Thy holy love.

To this end I desire, if it please Thee, that all
my thoughts, words, and actions, all use of the
senses of my body, of the powers of my soul, all
my respirations, all the pulsations of my heart,
all the moments of my life, all that has been, is,
and shall be in me — even all my sins, as far as
that may be by the power of Thy wisdom and
goodness which knoweth how to make all things,
even sin, work together for the good of those who
love Thee : I desire that all these things may be so
many voices by which I may say to Thee unceas-
ingly and everlastingly, with all the love of Heaven

2 1 2 The Reign of Jesus

and earth : " Amo te, amo te, etiam Domine Jesu,
amo te " — " I love Thee, I love Thee, yea, my
Lord Jesus, I also love Thee." And if there be in
me anything, or any part of my soul or of my body
which asserts the contrary, or which opposes this
desire, I will that it be reduced to dust and
scattered to the winds.

32. All devoted to the Love oj Jesus. — I desire
also that all things which have, do, and shall exist
in the order of Nature, of grace, or of glory in
Heaven or on earth, or even in hell, may be so
many voices saying to Thee continually and for
ever, for me and in my name : " Amo te, amo te,
Domine Jesu " — " I love Thee, I love Thee, O
Lord Jesus." This is the spiritual use which I
ought and which I desire to make of these things,
which Thou hast given to me that I may employ
them in loving Thee.

33. The Riches of our Poverty. — Further, I desire,
0 my Jesus, that all the powers and perfections
of Thy Divinity and of Thy Humanity, all Thy
states, mysteries, qualities, virtues, thoughts,
words, acts, and sufferings ; all Thy sacred wounds ;
every drop of Thy precious Blood ; all the minutes
of Thine eternity — if one may so speak — and in
general all things which have been, or are in Thy
Body, in Thy Soul, and in Thy Divinity, may be
so many voices which speak to Thee in my name
everlastingly, and which say : " Amo te, amantis-
sime Jesu, amo te, bonitas infmita ; amo te ex toto
corde meo, ex tota anima mea, et ex totis viribus
meis et magis amare volo " — " I love Thee, O
most love-worthy Jesus, I love Thee, O infinite
Goodness ; I love Thee with all my heart, with all
my soul, and with all my strength, and I desire to
love Thee ever more and more."

What We should Do each Month 213

Lastly, my Saviour, I desire that there may be
nothing in my whole being, or in my life, in my
body, or in my soul, in time or eternity, which is
not transformed into love for Thee.

Fulfil these desires, 0 my most sweet Jesus, I
beseech Thee by all that Thou art, by all Thy
goodness and mercy, by all that Thou loves t and
by all that loves Thee in Heaven and earth, for
Thy content and for Thy pure love's sake. But,
because Thy Will is mine and because I desire
these things by virtue of this Thy Will, I have a
firm hope that, in Thine infinite goodness, these my
desires will be fulfilled in the way that Thine eternal
Wisdom shall deem most fitting for the glory of
Thy divine Majesty.

34. The e%iled Soul languishes with Love. —
Good Jesus, when shall there be nothing in me
which shall hinder my loving Thee ? Alas ! I see
well that this will not be on earth, but only in
Heaven. 0 Heaven, how desirable art thou ! It
is there that Jesus is perfectly loved ; it is there
that the love of Jesus reigns absolutely ; there no
hearts are to be found save those which are trans-
formed into this divine love. 0 earth, O world,
O body of mine, dark prison-house of my soul,
how unendurable are ye ! Unhappy that I am,
who will deliver me from this body of death ?
Must I dwell still longer in this dreary land of exile,
on this foreign soil, in this cursed place of sin ?
Will it not soon come, the day, the hour, so
desirable and so long desired, when I shall begin
to love perfectly my most love-worthy Saviour ?

Ah ! my Jesus, my sweet Jesus, my beloved
Jesus, shall I, then, never love Thee as I desire ?
God of mercy, wilt Thou not have pity on my
suffering ? Wilt Thou not give ear to my sighing ?

214 The Reign of Jesus

Wilt Thou not hear and answer my cry of distress ?
0 Lord, it is to Thee that I cry, it is Thou Whom I
desire, it is Thou Whom I long for ; and Thou
knowest that I desire naught in Heaven or in
earth, in life or in death, save Thy pure love.

Mother of Jesus, Angels of Jesus, Saints of Jesus,
and all ye creatures of Jesus, have pity on my
suffering ; speak for me to the Beloved of my soul,
say to Him that I am languishing for love of Him.
Say to Him that I desire naught, in Time or in
Eternity, save His pure love — not Heaven, nor the
glory of Heaven, nor the delights of Paradise, nor
the sweetness of His grace, but His most pure
love. Say to Him that I can no longer live
without this pure love. Pray Him to hasten in
me the work of His grace, to consume me wholly
in His divine love, and to take me soon into the
eternal kingdom of His love. " Amen, veni,
Domine Jesu " — " Amen, come, 0 Lord Jesus."
Come, my Life and my Light, come, my Love and
my All, come into my heart to destroy all that is
opposed to Thy love. Come, that Thou mayest
change me wholly into love for Thee. Come, that
Thou mayst draw me to Thee, that Thou mayst
take me shortly to that abode of love, in which
reigns the true and perfect love, in which all is
love, in which there is naught but love, love
unceasing, love unchanging, love eternal. 0
Jesus, Jesus, one and only love of my heart !

What We should Do each Month 215
III. Exercise of Preparation for Death.

EXPLANATION.

I. The exercise of preparation for death may be used — ■

1. During the monthly retreat. In this case one may
use one of the Meditations of the Blessed Jean Eudes.

2. During the yearly retreat. One may then make
use of two or three meditations.

3. One may devote ten consecutive days to this prepa-
ration, as the Blessed Jean Eudes recommends. One
may usefully do so during the Octave of All Souls.

II. The purpose of the meditations of the Blessed Jean
Eudes is to make our death resemble the death of our
Lord Jesus Christ, so that our agony may be a con-
tinuation of His agony and our death a real sacrifice.
It is most interesting and profitable to compare the teaching
of Bossuet with the doctrine of the Blessed Jean Eudes :

" It is so greatly to the interest of Christians to know
the mysteries and to share in the sentiments and dis-
positions of Jesus Christ, their adorable Saviour, in all
His states — above all, in the great and terrible mysteries
of His Passion, by which He accomplished the work of
our salvation — that they should ever be striving to do
so. It is a great grace to associate one's soul, by means
of the link of union, of company, and of intercourse
which exists between the Head and its loving members,
with the divine occupations of the soul of Jesus Christ,
and with the heroical virtues which He practised in this
state. The Saviour took upon Him, not the sins alone,
but also all the interests, obligations, and duties of His
children and true mystical members. Their agony was
distinctly present to the eyes of His heart when He was
hanging on the Cross ; He foresaw the kind of sickness
of which they were to die ; He was not ignorant of how
the sufferings of a violent or sudden malady would fetter
not only the senses, but the noblest powers of the soul,
and render them weak and powerless. Who can under-
stand the extent, the effort of the love with which He
looked upon their agony as inseparable from His ? All
He did at that moment He did in payment of their debts,
and in place of what they would be unable to do. He
offered this agony of His children and all its consequences
by an impulse of love which He communicated from that
moment to those in a condition to share in it, to supple-

2 1 6 The Reign of Jesus

ment their powerlessness if their darkened reason should
make them incapable at the supreme moment of sharing
His dispositions.

" One of the great uses of the sacrificing of Jesus Christ
to the end of time will be to renew and perpetuate His
sacrifice, not only in the mystery of the Eucharist, but
in the death of His faithful ones.

" It is in this frame of mind that one should receive
the holy Viaticum. It is for this that the great Pontiff
of the New Covenant enters into His temple — that is to
say, into the body and into the soul of the Christian.
The Christian, uniting himself then, not only to the
adorable Body of Jesus Christ in His Sacrament, but also
to His Spirit and to His Heart ; acquiescing in His pur-
pose by the submission and adherence of his will ; desiring
to dispose of his being and of his life in the same way as
the great Sanctifier ; becomes priest with Him in his
death, and completes in this last moment the sacrifice
to which he had been destined at his Baptism, and which
he had continued every moment of his life " (" Reflexions
sur l'Agonie de Notre Seigneur," t. iv.).

Preparation for Death.

The violence of the malady which generally
precedes death prevents one's applying one's
mind to God in order to fulfil the obligations due
to Him at that time. In order to remedy this, it
is most useful to devote a few days every year to
the accomplishment of the exercises and the duties
which one ought to render to God at the moment
of death. It is related in the Life of S. Gertrude
that she made use of this pious exercise. Our Lord
expressed His satisfaction to her, and promised to
keep this preparation for the hour of her death.
We should trust in His goodness to grant us the
same favour if we make use of the same exercise.

To this end, you may make, during ten con-
secutive days, the following meditations, or else
choose one each month in your retreat.

What We should Do each Month 217

FIRST MEDITATION.

ELEVATION TO JESUS ON SUBMISSION TO HIS
DIVINE WILL WITH REGARD TO OUR DEATH.

1. 0 my Lord Jesus, behold me prostrate at
Thy feet, adoring Thee as my sovereign Judge, in
the act of uttering the sentence of death which
Thou hast pronounced against me when Thou
saidst these words to Adam, and in his person to
all sinners : " Pulvis es et in pulverem reverteris "
— " Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou
return " (Gen. hi. 23).

In honour of, and in union with, the very great
love and the deep humility with which, at the feet
of Pilate, Thou didst hear and accept the sentence
of death pronounced against Thee, by his lips,
on behalf of Thine eternal Father ; in homage to
His divine justice, I submit with all my heart to
the sentence of death which Thou hast pronounced
against me from the beginning of the world ;
acknowledging that I have merited it — not only
on account of the original sin in which I was born,
but for each one of the sins which I have com-
mitted during my life.

2. But, my God, were I guiltless of all sins, both
original and actual, nevertheless I acknowledge
that, because of the sovereignty and absolute power
Thou hast over me, Thou canst most justly deprive
me of life, destroy me, do with me as it pleaseth
Thee. For this reason, in honour of and in union
with, the deep love and submission with which
the blessed Virgin Thy Mother — who owed naught
to Thy justice, nor was subject to death on
account of sin either original or actual — accepted
death in order to do homage to Thy sovereignty ;

2i 8 The Reign of Jesus

I accept it also in order to render homage to this
Thy sovereignty, yielding myself wholly into Thy
hands for this and all other things, that Thou
mayst dispose of me, in Time and in Eternity, as it
shall please Thee for Thy greater glory.

3. 0 Jesus, Thou art eternal and immortal, Thou
art Life and the Source of all life ! Nevertheless
Thou willedst to die on a Cross the most cruel and
most ignominious of all deaths, in order to do
homage to the justice, sovereignty, and to the
divine and eternal life of Thy Father, and to
prove Thy love for me. For this reason, O my
Saviour, even were I not condemned to die on
account of my sins, and were I nowise dependent
on Thy sovereignty (which is impossible) ; even if
Thou hadst not died for me in particular ; yet
dying, nevertheless, as Thou hast willed to die, I
ought not only to accept death, but even to desire
to die in order to honour Thy holy death ; as also
all Thy creatures ought, of their own will, become
subject to death in order to do homage to the death
of their Creator.

But, even hadst Thou not died, O my God, all
living beings ought, most willingly, to sacrifice
their life to Thee, in order to do homage to Thy
divine and immortal life, to Thy supreme and
eternal Being ; in order to bear witness and to
protest by this sacrifice that Thou alone art worthy
to exist, and that all other beings, all other life,
should not venture to appear in presence of Thine,
as the stars of heaven grow dark in presence of the
sun.

To honour and render homage to Thy life and
Thy death, in union with the great love which I
caused Thee to die in order to satisfy the justice of
Thy Father ; to affirm in presence of Heaven and

What We should Do each Month 219

earth that there is but one life worthy to exist :
that which Thou sharest with the Father and the
Holy Spirit ; in union also with the ardent love
with which Thy blessed Mother, all Thy Saints
and especially Thy holy martyrs, embraced death
with all their hearts ; I, too, accept and embrace,
with all my heart, such death as it shall please
Thee to send me, at what time, in what place, in
what manner, and with what attendant circum-
stances shall please Thee.

If Thou ordainest that I die a cruel or even an
ignominious death ; that I be forsaken, and de-
prived of all human aid ; that I lose all use of my
senses and of my reason ; provided that Thou be
ever with me — Thy Will be done ! I desire to
accept all in honour of Thy death so cruel and
ignominious, of Thy abandonment on the Cross
even by Thy Father, of Thy patience when Thou
wert treated as mad by Herod and his Court.

Lastly, O my sweet Jesus, I place myself en-
tirely in Thy hands, I yield myself wholly to Thy
good pleasure. Only one thing I beseech Thee to
grant me : that as Thou didst die in love, of love,
and for love, so I, if I be not worthy to die of Thy
love, or for Thy love, may at least die in Thy
love.

4. O Mother of Jesus, truly it would seem un-
fitting that thou shouldst die — thou who art the
Mother of the Eternal, of Him Who is Life ;
nevertheless, in homage to the adorable death of
thy Son, thou didst submit thyself most willingly
to death. Therefore, O holy Virgin, in honour
of the death of her who is the Mother of our Creator,
and our sovereign Lady, I offer thee my death
and that of all mankind. Deign to beg for us of
thy divine Son the grace of dying in His love.

220 The Reign of Jesus

SECOND MEDITATION.
THANKSGIVING FOR BENEFITS RECEIVED.

Having accepted death with these dispositions,
the next step to take is to thank our Lord for all
the favours we have received at His hands.

i. 0 Jesus, I consider and adore Thee as the
principle and source of all good and of all graces
temporal and eternal, especially of those which
Thou hast bestowed on me. I refer all these
graces to Thee, as to Him from Whom they
emanate and to whom, therefore, the glory is due.

O good Jesus, who can know all the favours
Thou hast bestowed on me ? Verily, they are
without number, and I am altogether powerless
to thank Thee worthily. Ah, Lord, let all that
has been, is, and shall be in me, all creatures in
earth and in Heaven — Thine Angels and Saints,
Thy blessed Mother, Thy Holy Spirit, Thine
eternal Father, all the powers of Thy Divinity
and of Thy Humanity, all the graces and mercies
emanating from Thee from the beginning of time —
let all be employed in praising Thee everlastingly,
all transformed into eternal praise to Thee.

O Father of Jesus, Holy Spirit of Jesus, Mother
of Jesus, Angels and Saints of Jesus, creatures
of Jesus, bless and give thanks eternally to Jesus
for me. 0 divine Jesus, glorify Thyself for me,
and give thanks a hundredfold to Thyself for me !

2. 0 good Jesus, Thou knowest how many
favours and benefits I have received from Thy
blessed Mother, from Thy Angels and Saints in
Heaven, and from many persons on earth ; Thou
knowest also how incapable I am of acknowledging
them, and of thanking Thee for them, as I ought.

What We should Do each Month 221

For this reason I have recourse to Thee, beseeching
Thee most humbly to supply what is lacking in
me, and to give to all these persons, both in
Heaven and earth, all I owe them for the benefits
I have received at their hands.

3. O Mother of grace, Mother of my God, it is
through Thee that I have received all the graces
which have been bestowed on me from Heaven.
May Heaven and earth bless thee for me and for
all those who, having received of Thy favours, yet
do not thank Thee.

THIRD MEDITATION.

OF CONFESSION, AND OF THE SATISFACTION

WHICH WE MUST MAKE TO GOD

FOR OUR SINS.

Having thanked God for the favours which He
has bestowed on us all through our life, it is most
necessary to ask pardon for our sins and to strive
to make to Him some reparation. To this end,
we should make a good confession — if not a general
confession, at least one made with as much care
and preparation as if it were to be our last. It
will be well, also, on this day, to pass a short time
in making use of the following elevations :

I. O most love- worthy Jesus, Thou hast created
me solely that I may love and serve Thee, Who art
infinitely worthy of all service and love, to Whom
I owe all. Nevertheless, I have scarcely done
aught save offend Thee, by thought, word, and act,
by all my bodily senses, and by all the faculties
of my soul, by the sinful use I have made of Thy
creatures, by disobedience to Thy commandments
and in an infinite number of ways. O God, what

222 The Reign of Jesus

sins, what ingratitude, what unfaithfulness ! Lord
Jesus, I plunge all these my offences in the tide
of Thy love and in the abyss of Thy mercy. Oh,
would I could be all transformed into suffering
and contrition, that I might deplore and, by tears
of blood, wipe out the offences I have committed
against this immense Goodness which merits to
be so greatly loved and honoured ! My God, what
can I do in reparation of the dishonour I have
caused Thee by my sins ? Oh, if it would suffice
to suffer all the torments and all the martyrdoms
possible ! But, alas ! were I to exhaust all my
strength in chastising myself, were I to endure all
the tortures which ever have been, are, and will
be endured in all the world, I still could not, of
myself, make reparation for the insult I have
offered Thee by the least of my faults.

2. But I offer Thee, O good Jesus, all the glory,
all the love, all the service which Thy Saints and
Thy most blessed Mother have rendered Thee in
all their life by their holy thoughts, words, and
actions, by the holy use which they made of their
bodily senses and of the faculties of their souls,
by the virtues they practised and by the sufferings
they endured, in satisfaction for all the sins of
my life. In the same way I offer Thee all the
honour which has ever been, or which will ever be,
rendered Thee by all Thy Angels, by Thy Holy
Spirit, by Thyself, and by Thine eternal Father,
in reparation of the dishonour I have done Thee
during my life.

3. O Father of Jesus, Holy Spirit of Jesus,
Mother of Jesus, Angels and Saints of Jesus, offer
for me to my Saviour all the love and glory which
you have ever rendered Him, in satisfaction for the
wrong I have done him by my sins.

What We should Do each Month 223

4. Ah, miserable sinner that I am ! In offending
my God I have offended all things : I have offended
the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the Mother
of God, all the Saints and Angels, and generally
all creatures whose interest is the interest of their
Creator and who are offended by what offends
Him. What means are there, my God, of making
reparation for so many offences, satisfaction to
so many persons, of paying so heavy a debt ? I
know what I will do : I possess my Jesus, Who
hath in Himself an infinite treasure of virtues,
of merits, and of holy deeds, and Who has been
given to me to be my treasure, my virtue, my
sanctification, my redemption, and my reparation ;
I will offer Him in reparation and satisfaction for
all the offences which I have committed against
them. 0 holy Father, 0 divine Spirit, I offer
you all the love and all the honour that my Jesus
rendered you throughout His life, by His divine
thoughts, words, and actions, by the divine use
which He made of all parts of His Body and of
His Soul, by all the virtues He practised, and by all
the sufferings He endured ; in satisfaction for all
the offences which I have committed against you
in all my life.

0 blessed Virgin, 0 holy Angels, O blessed
Saints, I offer you my Treasure and my All, which
is Jesus ; accept from Him, I beseech you, that
which will pay the debt I owe you on account of
my sins and negligences.

5. 0 my Jesus, my all-worthy Redeemer, do
Thou Thyself make reparation for my sins, and
atone for all the omissions of which I have been
guilty in all my life with regard to Thy Father,
Thy Holy Spirit, Thy blessed Mother, Thy Saints,
and to all the persons whom I have offended.

224 The Reign of Jesus

I give myself to Thee, to do and suffer all it shall
please Thee to this end, accepting henceforth all
the pain of mind and body which I may have to
endure, whether in this world or in the world to
come, in satisfaction for my sins.

6. 0 most holy Virgin, I had so many obliga-
tions to serve and honour thee, and I have so
little honoured and so often offended thee by
offending Thy Son ! I ask thy forgiveness, O
Mother of Mercy ; and in satisfaction I offer thee
all the honours ever rendered thee in Heaven and
earth, and I beseech all the Angels, all the Saints,
the Holy Spirit, Thy Son, and the eternal Father
to atone for my negligence, and to give thee all
the glory which I should have rendered thee in all
my life.

FOURTH MEDITATION.
OF THE HOLY COMMUNION.

Holy Communion being the holiest and most
efficacious means which God has given us of doing
Him honour, of fulfilling our obligations to Him,
and of preparing ourselves to die a holy death,
we should be careful to choose a day each month
in order to prepare ourselves to communicate
with an especial devotion and with as much care
and fervour as if it were destined to be our last
Communion. You will find the exercise for Holy
Communion in the third part of this book.

I will only add : Offer this last Communion to
our Lord (i) in honour of all He is, in Himself
and for you ; (2) in thanksgiving for all the effects
of His love for His Father, for all His creatures,
and especially for you ; (3) in satisfaction for all
the dishonour which has ever been done Him by

What We should Do each Month 225

the sins of all the world, especially your own ;
(4) for the accomplishment of all His purposes with
regard to all mankind — yourself in particular.

Then give yourself to the eternal Father, and
beseech Him to unite you to the most deep love
with which He received His Son Jesus on the day
of His Ascension into His bosom and into his
heart.

Give yourself to Jesus, and beseech Him to unite
you to the most ardent love and the deep humility
with which He instituted the most holy Sacrament
of the Altar.

Offer yourself to the blessed Virgin, to S. John
the Evangelist, to S. Magdalene, to S. Mary of
Egypt, and to all the Saints, beseeching them to
make you a partaker in the love, fervour, and
humility, in the purity and holiness with which
they made their last Communion.

After having communicated, and having offered
to our Lord the usual thanksgiving with an un-
usual fervour, adore all the purposes He has had
with regard to you from all eternity. Ask His
forgiveness for the hindrances you have placed
in the way of these purposes all your life. Pray
Him with all your heart not to allow you to die
before the designs of His goodness and the work
of His grace are accomplished in your soul. Give
yourself to Him with a hearty desire and a firm
resolution to labour to forward the accomplish-
ment and consummation of His work in you, and
to destroy all that might oppose it, so that you
may be able to say to Him in the last day of your
I life what He said in His last hour : " Opus consum-
[mavi, quod dedisti mihi ut faciam " — ■" I have ac-
complished the work which Thou gavest Me to
do " (S. John xvii. 4).

226 The Reign of Jesus

FIFTH MEDITATION.
OF THE SACRAMENT OF EXTREME UNCTION.

For the reason that we know not whether we
shall be in a condition to think of God when the
time shall come for us to receive the Sacrament
of Extreme Unction, it is well to choose a day in
which to fulfil the duty we owe to our Lord and to
make use of the following prayers in order to
prepare us to receive it well.

I. O Jesus, I adore Thee as the Institutor of
the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, as the Source
of all the grace therein contained — grace which
Thou hast acquired by the effusion of Thy precious
blood. I refer to Thee all the effects of grace
which Thou hast ever produced in souls by means
of this Sacrament, and I praise Thee a thousand
times for all the glory procured to Thee by this
same Sacrament. I adore all the purposes Thou
hadst in instituting it, and I yield myself to Thee
that Thou mayst fulfil in me these Thy purposes,
beseeching Thee to grant me the favour of receiving
this Sacrament at the end of my life, or, if I be not
able to receive it, to bestow upon my soul, in Thy
great mercy, the same graces as if I received it in
very deed.

2. O Jesus, I adore Thee in the holy unction
which Thou hast willed the loving S. Magdalene
to make on Thy sacred Body in the last years of
Thy life, and in the unction made by S. Nicodemus
and S. Joseph of Arimathea at the moment oi
Thy death and burial. I offer Thee all the sacred
unctions which have been, and which will be
made in this last Sacrament, on the bodies of al.
those Christians who have received, or who wil.

What We should Do each iMonth 227

receive it, in honour of this unction made on Thy
divine Body.

3. 0 good Jesus, I adore Thee as the great
High Priest, to Whom it primarily pertains to
confer all Sacraments. I offer myself to Thee in
this high character of Thine, and I beseech Thee
to come into my heart to prepare me for the
reception of the Sacrament of Extreme Unction,
and to produce in me all the effects of grace which
the external ceremonies of this Sacrament repre-
sent.

In order, on my side, to prepare myself, behold
me at Thy feet, 0 my Saviour, accusing myself
in Thy presence and in presence of Thy Angels
and Saints, of all the sins of my life, imploring
forgiveness with all the humility and contrition
of which I am capable, and beseeching Thee, Thy
blessed Mother, and all Thy Angels and Saints,
with all my heart to beg forgiveness for me of the
eternal Father, and to offer to Him, in satisfaction
for my sins, all that Thou hast done and suffered
throughout Thy life.

0 good Jesus, come now, come into my soul,
into my heart. Come that Thou mayest diffuse
therein Thy holy peace, and that Thou mayest
destroy in me all which may trouble the peace
and calm of my spirit. Come, that Thou mayst
wash and purify me by Thy precious Blood from
all stain of sin. Come, that Thou mayst give me
pardon, absolution, full and entire remission of
all my sins.

0 most sweet Jesus, I offer and present unto
Thee all my senses and all the members of my
body, all the faculties of my soul : anoint them, I
beseech Thee, with this holy and sacred oil which
ever flows from Thy divine Heart — the oil of Thy

228 The Reign of Jesus

grace and mercy, and by this heavenly unction
wipe away all stain of sin. 0 my dear Jesus, I
offer Thee the holy use which Thou, with Thy
blessed Mother and all Thy Saints, hast made of
all Thy senses and of all the members of Thy
body and of the faculties of Thy soul, in satisfac-
tion for the bad use which I have made of mine.
Give me grace, I beseech Thee, to employ them,
henceforth, solely for Thy glory.

Lastly, 0 most love- worthy Jesus, give me, I
beseech Thee, Thy holy benediction ; pray Thy
Father and Thy Holy Spirit to unite in blessing
me, so that, by the virtue of this divine and
puissant benediction, all in me that is displeasing
to Thee may be destroyed, and that I may be
for ever transformed into blessing and praise to
Thy Father, to Thee, and to Thy Holy Spirit.

SIXTH MEDITATION.
OF THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF JESUS.

One day of our retreat we shall devote to making
our will in imitation and in honour of the last will
and testament of Jesus. In presence of God we
shall endeavour to make ours in the same spirit
and with the same dispositions.

0 Jesus, I adore Thee in the last days of Thy
life. I adore all that then took place in Thee, but
especially I adore Thee making Thy will in the
upper room, in the Garden of Olives, and on the
Cross. I adore, I bless, I glorify Thy great love
for Thy Father, Thy ardent charity for us, and all
the other holy dispositions with which Thou hast
made it.

We find five clauses in Thy will. The first

What We should Do each Month 229

concerns Thine enemies ; for, oh, wondrous excess
of goodness ! the first word and the first prayer
Thou dost utter on the Cross is for Thine enemies,
imploring Thy Father to forgive them— and that
at the moment when they were crucifying Thee
(S. Luke xxiii. 24). The second clause concerns
f hy Father, into Whose hands Thou dost commend
fhy spirit with these words : " Father, unto Thy
hands I commend My spirit " (S. Luke xxiii. 26).

And Thou speakest these words not only of
Thy divine Spirit, but also of mine, and of the
spirits of all who belong to Thee ; Thou hast
them present in Thy mind at that supreme moment
and Thou dost look upon them as Thine— as being
one with Thy Spirit by virtue of the close union
existing between them and Thee. For this reason,
in pronouncing these words : " Pater, in manus tuas
commendo spiritum meum," Thou dost speak at
once for Thee and for me ; Thou dost commend
my spirit, with Thine, to Thy Father ; and Thou
dost address this prayer to Him Who is Thy
Father and mine, with an equal love in Thine
own name and in my name, in prevision of the
moment when my spirit shall leave my body.
This is why Thou callest Him " Father "—Father
m general, and not " My Father " in particular— to
show that Thou dost regard Him not only as Thy
Father, but as the common and universal Father
of all Thy brethren ; and that Thou dost pray, not
only for Thyself, but for all those that belong to
Thee, and this with a filial love and trust on Thine
own behalf and on theirs— for which all love and
blessing be Thine eternally.

The third clause of Thy will concerns Thy
blessed Mother, to whom Thou dost give that
which is dearest to Thee after herself— Thy beloved

230 The Reign of Jesus

disciple S. John the Evangelist, and in his person
all Thy disciples and children to the end of time.
For in saying these words to Thy blessed Mother,
"Woman behold thy son" (S. John xix. 26),
Thou givest to her not only S. John, but also all
Christians to be her children ; and thus Thou
givest her what Thou holdest most dear. In the
same way, in saying to S. John these words,
"Behold thy Mother" (S. John xix. 27), Thou
dost give to him and to all Christians her who is
the most precious to Thee of all created beings,
Thy most blessed Mother. Thou dost give her
to them to be their Mother, as she is Thine, bes-
towing on them the relationship and character of
sons — that closest of all ties which united Thee
to her.

For this reason, when Thou declares t to her this
substitution, Thou callest her not Mother but
Mulier (Woman) to show that Thou dost yield
up to us Thy character of Son, and Thou dost
give us as Mother her who until then had been
Thine, but who for a time was to be deprived of this
title by the death of her Son. Thus then, O good
Jesus, Thou hast given me by Thy last will and
testament to Thy blessed Mother, and Thou hast
given me to her, not only as slave, servant, or
subject, but in the noblest and closest of all char-
acters— the character of a son : " Mulier, ecce films
tuus." And reciprocally, Thou gavest her to me,
not only as Queen and Sovereign Lady, but in the
most honourable, the dearest character possible —
as a Mother. 0 love ! O excess of goodness !
Oh, why is not the whole world inflamed with love
in return for such goodness !

The fourth clause of Thy will concerns us in a
special manner. For we have our part in it in

What We should Do each Month 231

so many ways that it seems to have been made
solely for us.

1. During the last days of Thy life Thou dost
give proof to us, in Thy last words, of Thy love so
unmeasured and so extraordinary. Thus, Thou
dost assure us that Thy Father loveth us as He loveth
Thee (S. John xvii. 23) and that Thou dost love
us as Thy Father loveth Thee. Thou dost also order
us to love Thee as Thou dost love the Father, to love
one another as Thou hast loved us (S. John xv. 9).

2. During those last days Thou dost give and
commend us with deep solicitude and affection
to the Persons the most worthy, the most powerful,
those whom in heaven and earth Thou most lovest
and by whom Thou art most loved — to thine
eternal Father and to Thy divine Mother. To
Thy Father, for, shortly before Thy crucifixion,
Thou didst address to Him this prayer for all those
who belonged to Thee : Holy Father, keep in Thy
name those whom Thou hast given Me. I pray not
for these only (speaking of Thine Apostles), but
for all those who shall believe in Me (S. John xvii.
20). When Thou wert on the Cross Thou didst
commend our souls with Thine into His hands.
Thou didst commend us also to Thy blessed
Mother by giving us to her to be her children.

3. We have our share in Thy will inasmuch as,
on the eve of Thy death, in that last public and
solemn prayer, Thou didst ask and obtain for us
of Thy Father the greatest benefits possible for
Thee to ask or for Him to bestow. For these are
the requests Thou didst make on our behalf : " I
will, Father, that those whom Thou hast given
Me be there where I am " (S. John xvii. 24) — that
is to say, I will that they have their dwelling and
their rest in Thy bosom and in Thy heart. " Holy

232 The Reign of Jesus

Father, may the love wherewith Thou hast loved
Me be in them " (S. John xvii. 25, 26) — that is to
say, Love them as Thou lovest Me ; love them
with the deepest, most ardent, most divine love
which is and can be. Look upon them with the
same eyes with which Thou dost regard Me ; love
them with the same heart with which Thou lovest
Me ; use them as Thou usest Me, and give to them
all Thou givest to Me. " Holy Father, that they
may be one as We are one. That they may be
one in Us, as Thou, my Father, art in Me and I
in Thee. I in them and Thou in Me, that they
also may be one " (S. John xvii. 21-23). Ah !
what love ! Lord, what more couldst Thou ask of
Thy Father for us ?

4. We have our share in Thy will, because on
the eve and on the day of Thy death Thou didst
give us all that Thou didst possess most rare and
most precious. Thou didst give us Thine eternal
Father to be our Father — beseeching Him to love
us with a paternal love. Thou didst give us Thy
blessed Mother to be our Mother. Thou didst give
us Thy most holy Body in the Eucharist ; Thy holy
Soul at Thy death according to Thy word, " I give
My soul for My sheep " (S. John x. 15). Thou didst
give us Thy precious blood to the last drop, Thy
life, Thy merits, Thy sufferings, Thy Humanity,
and Thy Divinity, according to Thy saying, " I
have given them the light which Thou gavest Me "
(S. John xvii. 22). In a word, Thou gavest us
all, without reserve. Ah, Lord, how admirable is
Thy goodness which overwhelmed us with benefits
in that same hour in which we overwhelmed Thee
with sufferings ! Ah, my sweet Jesus, how is it
possible that we should love Thee so little, that
we should hold Thee so cheap ! How is it possible

What We should Do each Month 233

that so great a love should be so lightly valued,
so despised by those on whom Thou hast lavished
it !

The fifth and last clause of Thy will was pro-
nounced on the Mount of Olives, when, on the point
of leaving Thine Apostles and ascending into
heaven, Thou didst give them Thy holy bene-
diction. We have also our share in this clause,
for in giving Thy benediction to Thine Apostles
and disciples Thou didst give it to all and each of
us who were at that moment as clearly present to
Thy mind as we are now. Oh, may heaven and
earth bless Thee, and all that is therein be trans-
formed into thanksgiving without end.

Lo ! O good Jesus, the five clauses of Thine
admirable will, in honour of which I desire, if it
please Thee, to draw up mine in this manner :

OUR SPIRITUAL LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT.

i. 0 most sweet Jesus, in honour of, and in
union with, the love which impelled Thee to shed
Thy blood, to die for Thine enemies, and to pray
Thy Father to pardon those who crucified Thee,
I forgive fully and freely, without any reserve or
restriction, all those who have offended or dis-
pleased me, and I beseech Thee, too, to pardon
them." I offer myself to Thee, ready to do and
suffer for them all it shall please Thee to inflict —
even to shed my blood and die for them if need be
and if Thou desirest it of me. I ask pardon, also,
on my side, with all the humility of which I am
capable, of all those whom I have offended or
displeased throughout my life, and I offer myself
to Thee to make all the reparation it shall please
Thee to require.

234 The Reign of Jesus

2. In honour of, and in union with, the great
love, perfect trust, and all the other holy disposi-
tions with which Thou commendest Thy Soul, and
all the souls belonging to Thee, into Thy Father's
hands, I give and yield my soul, together with the
souls of those under my care, into the hands and
into the most loving heart of this divine Father,
Who is my God, my Creator, and my most loving
Father. I thus commend them, so that He may
dispose of them as it pleaseth Him, trusting,
nevertheless, in His infinite goodness to place
them with Thine, O my good Jesus, in His bosom,
that they may love Him and bless Him eternally
with Thee according to the desire which Thou didst
express by these words : " I will, Father, that those
whom Thou hast given Me be there where I am "
(S. John xix. 24).

3. In honour of, and in union with, the great
charity with which Thou didst commend all Thy
friends and children to Thy blessed Mother, I give
and resign into the hands of this holy Virgin all
those whom Thou hast placed under my care,
beseeching Thee, O good Jesus, Thyself to give
and commend them to her. I also do beseech
her with all my heart, by the great love Thou
bearest her and by her love for Thee, and by that
love which impelled Thee to confide to her Thy
friends and children, to regard them as especially
her children and to be their true Mother.

4. In honour of, and in union with, the most
puissant love with which Thou didst commend
me to Thy Father, in the last days of Thy life ;
with which Thou didst ask for me benefits so great ;
with which Thou gavest me all that Thou didst
hold most dear as a proof of Thy love — in union
with this great love, I commend to Thee all those

What We should Do each Month 235

to whom I owe this duty, and I ask for them all
that Thou didst ask of Thy Father on my behalf
on the last day of Thy life. I give myself to Thee
with all my heart for ever. I give myself to Thee
that I may love Thee as Thou lovest Thy Father
and as Thy Father loveth Thee. I give myself
to Thee that I may love my neighbour as Thou
lovest me — ready to shed my blood and give my
life for him, if it be Thy good pleasure.

5. 0 Jesus, God of blessings, I adore Thee in
that last moment of Thy sojourn on this earth,
when, on the Mount of Olives, Thou wert about
to leave the earth and ascend into Heaven. I
adore Thee, giving Thy holy benediction to Thy
blessed Mother, to Thine Apostles, and to Thy
disciples. I adore the great love and all the other
dispositions of Thy holy soul with which Thou
hast performed this action related in the Holy
Gospel (S. Luke xxiv. 50).

O good Jesus, behold me prostrate at Thy feet,
in union with the humility and the other holy
dispositions with which Thy blessed Mother and
Thine Apostles and disciples prostrated themselves
when Thou didst give them Thy benediction :
beseeching Thee most humbly by the love Thou
bearest them, and by their love for Thee, to give
at this moment, to me and to all those whom I
have commended to Thee, Thy most holy bene-
diction, so that, by virtue of this divine blessing,
all in us which is displeasing to Thee may be
destroyed, and that we may be all transformed
into eternal praise, love, and blessing towards
Thee.

236 The Reign of Jesus

SEVENTH MEDITATION.
OF OUR LAST AGONY AND THE MOMENT OF DEATH.

We shall look upon this day as being our last,
and we shall try to spend it with as much care
and devotion as if we had only this one day left
in which to love God. To this end, we must devote
ourselves to contemplating and adoring our Lord
in the last day of His life on earth, and to doing all
we do with His holy and divine dispositions,
uniting ourselves to them in readiness for the last
day of our life. We shall beg Jesus Himself to
unite us to His holy dispositions, to imprint them
in us so that we may be numbered with those of
whom it is said, " Blessed are the dead who die
in the Lord " — that is to say, those who die in
the spirit and in the dispositions in which our
Lord Jesus died.

We should act in the same way with regard to
the Blessed Virgin, considering her in the last day
of her life, uniting ourselves to her dispositions and
offering her the last day of our life in honour of the
last day of hers.

I will also add that it is well, on this day, to
adore Jesus and to honour His most holy Mother
in their last agony and in their death, and to offer
them our last agony and death, beseeching them
to unite them to theirs and to bless and sanctify
them by theirs. It is also well to adore the power
of that divine love which was the cause of the
death of Jesus and of His blessed Mother ; beseech-
ing Him to grant that we too, like them, may die
0} love and for love — our life consumed by this
sacred fire.

Honour also, on this day, all the holy martyrs

What We should Do each Month 237

and all the other Saints in their last agony and
death. Offer to them your last agony and death ;
pray them to unite you to the holy dispositions
with which they prepared for death, and to permit
you to partake of the love and glory which they
rendered to our Lord on the last day of their life
and at the moment of their death.

Pray especially to S. John the Evangelist, S.
Magdalene, the good thief who died in company
with Jesus, and all the Saints who were present at
the death of the Son of God, that they may be
present at your death and may assist you by their
prayers.

On this day, too, it would be a fitting thing to
read the Passion of our Lord, the seventeenth
chapter of the gospel of S. John, which contains
the last discourses and prayers of Jesus before He
went forth to meet His Cross ; also the prayers
of the Church for the dying soul, which are most
profitable reading. For you do not know if, in the
last day of your life, you will be in a state to make
use of these means of preparation for a holy
death. It is for this reason that it is well to fore-
stall that day, and to read the Passion of our
Lord and the above-mentioned prayers with all
the devotion you would desire to have when dying,
and with which they have ever been read by Holy
Church.

Above all, while reading the last words and
prayers of Jesus, give yourself to Him with the
desire of uttering these words and prayers in union
with the love with which He pronounced them,
begging Him to imprint in your heart these dis-
positions in readiness for the last day of your life
and to make these holy words efficacious to you.
Lastly, prostrate yourself at the feet of Jesus,

238 The Reign of Jesus

to beg Him to bestow on you His holy benediction
for the last day of your life — in this way :

" O Jesus, give me, I beseech Thee, Thy holy
benediction for the last day of my life, and grant
in Thy great goodness that the last instant of my
life may be consecrated to the glory of the last
instant of Thy life, and that my last breath may
be an act of pure love to Thee."

You may also address the same prayer to the
blessed Virgin.

EIGHTH MEDITATION.

OF THE PARTICULAR JUDGMENT WHICH TAKES
PLACE AT THE MOMENT OF DEATH.

It is a most holy practice, when one is present
at a death, to kneel down, in order to adore the
Son of God coming to judge this soul even while
still in the body, in which it dwells until His
judgment has assigned to it another abode. It
would be easy to prove this coming of the Son of
God to judge each one of us at the moment of
death by several passages of Holy Scripture, which
allude to it clearly, but this is not the place. That
which I have to say now is that, if it is well to
adore the Son of God in the judgment which He
pronounces on others at their death, much more
should we adore Him for His coming to us and for
the judgment which He will pronounce on us at
our death, rendering Him now of our own free-
will and out of love for Him what we shall be
obliged of necessity to render Him then. This is
therefore our exercise on this day, in this way :

1. Jesus laden with the Sins of the World. — O
Jesus, Thou art the Holy of holies, Thou art all

What We should Do each Month 239

holiness — infinitely removed from all sin and
imperfection. And, nevertheless, I behold Thee
prostrate at Thy Father's feet in the Garden of
Olives, and the following day at the feet of Pilate,
where Thy Father, considering Thee as bearing
the sins of the whole world and as standing in the
place of all sinners, exercises His justice on Thee,
pronounces against Thee the sentence due to sin-
ners, and condemns Thee to the death of the cross.
And Thou dost accept this judgment with the
most perfect submission, the deepest humility,
and the most ardent love for Thy Father and
for us. 0 Jesus, I adore and glorify Thee in
this moment of judgment, and in all the holy
dispositions of humility, detestation of sin,
submission, and love, with which Thou didst ac-
cept it.

2. Jesus the Sovereign Judge. — In honour of,
and in union with, these dispositions of Thine,
behold me prostrate at Thy feet, 0 Jesus, whom
I acknowledge and adore as my sovereign Judge.
I submit myself most willingly to the supreme
right Thou hast to judge me. I rejoice infinitely
that Thou hast this sovereign authority over me
and over all mankind and over the Angels. I
bless Thy Father a thousand times for having
conferred on Thee this authority, and I do protest
to Thee that if — which is impossible — Thou hadst
it not and it were mine, I would strip myself of it
in order to bestow it on Thee. I do protest,
further, that were I in no wise subject to this Thy
power of judgment, I should of my own free-will
submit myself to it in homage to Thy divine justice
and to the judgment pronounced on Thee by Thy
Father during Thy holy Passion.

3. Act of Submission. — O Jesus, I adore Thee

240 The Reign of Jesus

drawing near to me in the hour of my death in
order to judge me. Make me, I beseech Thee, to
share even now the divine light by which Thou
wilt, at that moment, enable me to see clearly all
that has happened in my whole life, in order that
I may render an account of it to Thee ; make me
to share also the zeal of Thy justice with which
Thou wilt avenge Thyself on my sins, so that even
now I may see clearly my faults, and avenge Thee
for my sins by a perfect contrition and by a horror
and loathing of them.

4. Confession of our Sins. — 0 my God, that my
sins are numberless I confess it in presence of
Thee, of Thy blessed Mother, and of Thine Angels
and Saints, and from henceforth I condemn myself
and I affirm that there is no torture on earth,
in Purgatory, or in Hell, capable of fully expiating
my sins did not Thy mercy and the virtue of Thy
precious Blood intervene in my favour ; for all
such torments are finite, whereas the insult I have
offered you by my sins is infinite, because Thine
offended Majesty is infinite.

Nevertheless, 0 God of mercy, suffer me not to be
of the number of those unfortunate ones who will
never love Thee. But bear in mind, 0 Saviour of
my soul, that Thou didst will to be judged in my
stead, and that Thou art altogether worthy to
obtain the pardon for my sins, which Thou hast
asked of Thy Father. Offer, therefore, to Thy
Father the judgment pronounced on Thee for my
sins, and beseech Him to pardon them, not to me
but to Thee.

0 Mother of mercy, Mother of Jesus, 0 Angels
of Jesus, 0 Saints of Jesus, offer to God for me all
your merits and labours, and all the glory you have
ever rendered Him, in satisfaction for my sins.

What We should Do each Month 241

Pray Him to use me, not according to the rigour
of His justice, but according to the multitude of
His mercies, so that with you I may love and
bless Him for ever.

NINTH MEDITATION.
OF DEATH AND BURIAL.

As Jesus Christ our Lord willed to pass through
all the states of our human and mortal life in order
to honour His eternal Father in them, and to
bless and sanctify them to us, so we ought to have
a holy zeal in honouring Him in all the states
through which He passed. In order to follow
out this scheme, having now adored Him in the
last moment of His life, and having offered Him
the last moment of ours, it is now fitting that we
should adore Him in the state of death in which
He passed the space of three days, and that we
should consecrate to Him the state of death in
which we shall remain from the last moment of
our life until the day of the general resurrection —
in this way :

I. 0 Jesus, Thou art the Life, Thou art Life
eternal, Thou art the source of all life, nevertheless
I see Thee plunged in the darkness and shadow
of death.

I see that Thou dost bid farewell for a time to
Thy beloved Mother, to Thy dear Apostles and
disciples, and to all Thy friends, whom Thou leavest
mourning in grief deeper than any which ever has
existed or will exist.

I see Thy holy Soul separated from this deified
body, with which she had enjoyed a union so holy,
so intimate, so divine.

16

242 The Reign of Jesus

I see this same Body, most holy and most divine,
lying in the dust of a sepulchre.

0 my Jesus, 1 adore, praise, and glorify Thee
in all these mysteries. I offer Thee all the honour
rendered Thee in this state by Thy blessed Mother,
by S. Magdalene, by all Thy Apostles and disciples,
by Thy Angels, by the holy souls delivered by Thee
out of Limbus, and by Thy whole Church. I
offer Thee also all the glory which Thy Father
hath given Thee, and which Thou enjoyest now
in Heaven, in compensation for this humiliation
which Thou didst endure on earth.

1 offer the state of death in which I shall one
day be in honour of this Thy state of death. I
offer Thee the separation from my relations and
friends as an act of homage to the most bitter
separation which was imposed on Thee, from Thy
dearest Mother and from Thy beloved Apostles
and disciples.

I offer thee the grief and the tears of my relations
and friends in honour of the grief and the tears of
Thy afflicted Mother and Thy grief-stricken
Apostles. I offer Thee the separation of my soul
and body in honour of the miraculous separation
of Thy holy Soul and sacred Body. I offer Thee
the state in which my soul will be until it is re-
united to my body as an act of homage to the
state of Thy Soul during the time of its separation
from Thy Body.

I offer Thee the burial of my body in honour of
the burial of Thy holy Body. And, in union with
the love with which Thou hast willed Thy most
holy Body to remain in the earth, and with which
Thou hast so often given me that same Body in
Holy Communion— to me who am but a worm
and vile earth — I give, most willingly, my body

What We should Do each Month 243

to the earth and to the worms, and I consent
that it shall be reduced to dust. I do so, however,
on condition, if it so please Thee, 0 my Saviour,
that every grain of the dust into which my flesh
and my bones shall be reduced, may be so many
tongues and voices to praise and glorify con-
tinually the adorable mystery of Thy burial ; and
that thus I may be able to say with the Psalmist :
" Omnia ossa mea dicent, Domine, quis similis
tibi ?" — " All my bones say : Lord, Who is like
unto Thee?" (Ps. xxxiv. 10).

2. O divine Jesus, Thy Body and Thy SouJ,
separated one from the other, remained, never-
theless, united to Thy Divinity ; for this reason.
They are ever worthy of infinite honour and
adoration. I adore, therefore, Thy most holy
Soul descending into Limbus ; I adore all that
took place in it, and all the effects it produced in
the souls of the holy patriarchs during the time
of its separation from Thy Body. I adore also
Thy Body in the tomb in all its members and parts
— for there is nothing in it which is not infinitely
adorable. I adore you, 0 most holy eyes of my
Saviour. I adore you, 0 sacred ears of my God.
I adore and praise you, O divine mouth, O blessed
tongue of Him Who is the eternal Word of the
Father. I adore and bless you, 0 divine hands
and sacred feet of my Lord. I adore and love
Thee, O most love- worthy heart of Jesus. Alas,
my beloved, to what a state art Thou reduced
because of me ! Those sacred eyes, whose gentle
gaze rejoiced all who conversed with Thee, are
darkened now by the shadows of death. Those
holy ears, ever open to the cry and to the prayer
of the unhappy, are closed and hear no more.
That divine mouth, full of the words of life, is

244 The Reign of Jesus

become dumb and speechless. Those blessed hands
which have wrought such wonders, are powerless
and motionless. Those divine feet, so often
wearied for the salvation of mankind, can stir no
more. But, above all, this heart of my Jesus, so
love-worthy, that most worthy and most noble
throne of the divine love, is lifeless and insensible.
Ah, my dear Jesus, what hath reduced Thee to
so piteous a state ? It is my sins and Thy love.
Ah, cursed and loathed sin, how dost thou fill me
with horror ! 0 love of my Saviour, how do I love
Thee, how do I bless Thee for ever !

3. O good Jesus, I yield myself up to the might
of Thy holy love, and I beseech Thee to place me,
even now, in that state of death in which Thou
wert. Extinguish in me wholly the life of sin
and of the old Adam. Make me to die perfectly
to the world, to myself, and to all which is not
Thee. Mortify my eyes, my ears, my tongue,
my hands, my feet, my heart, and all the faculties
of my body and soul, that I may be able neither
to see, nor hear, speak, taste, act, walk, neither
love, think, or will, nor make use of any part of
my body or of my soul, save according to Thy
good pleasure and according to the leading and
impulsion of Thy divine Spirit.

4. 0 my beloved Jesus, I give myself to Thee
that Thou mayest produce in me the effect of
these words of Thine Apostle : " Ye are dead, and
your life is hid with Christ in God " (Col. hi. 3).
Do Thou hide me and bury me with Thee in God.
Bury my mind, my heart, my will, my life, and
my whole being, in Thy mind, in Thy heart, in Thy
will, in Thy life, and in Thy being, so that I may
have no thoughts, no desires, no affections, no
feelings or dispositions other than Thine. And

What We should Do each Month 245

as the earth changes, and assimilates to itself
the bodies buried in it, so do Thou convert and
transform me wholly into Thee. Bury also my
pride in Thine humility, my coldness and indiffer-
ence in the fervour of Thy divine love, and all
my other vices and imperfections in Thy holy
virtues and perfections ; that, as the earth consumes
all the corruptions of the body buried in it so all
the corruptions of my soul may be consumed and
destroyed in Thy divine perfections.

5. 0 Mother of Jesus, I honour and revere thee
in thy death and burial. I offer thee all the
honour rendered thee at that moment by the
Angels and the holy Apostles. I thank thee for
all the glory which thou didst then render to the
death and burial of Thy Son. I offer thee my
death and burial, beseeching thee to obtain for
me, by thy holy prayers, that all which shall take
place in me then may be an eternal homage to
the death and burial of thy Son.

TENTH MEDITATION.

OF THE ENTRANCE OF OUR SOUL INTO
HEAVEN.

Although we be most unworthy to behold the
face of God and to be admitted into the blessed
company of the citizens of Heaven, having so
many times merited hell, nevertheless, it is certain
that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
the blessed Virgin, and all the Angels and Saints
have an extreme desire to see us soon associated
with them, that we too may be plunged in the
torrents of the heavenly and unspeakable joys of
the divine love, which has its perfect reign in

246 The Reign of Jesus

Heaven. And we should have a great trust in
the divine Goodness that He will accomplish this
one day ; and one of our greatest consolations
in this world should be the thought and the
awaiting of the day when we shall begin to glorify
and to love God perfectly. Oh, with what re-
joicing should we sing with the royal prophet, at
the prospect of that blessed day : " Lsetatus sum in
his quae dicta sunt mihi, in domum Domini ibimus "
— V I was glad when they said unto me, we will go
into the house of the Lord." " Blessed are they
who dwell in Thy tabernacle, O Lord ; they shall
praise Thee from everlasting to everlasting."

Assuredly, if we celebrate the anniversary of
our birth into the life of grace by holy Baptism,
so much the more should we celebrate the day of
our entrance into Heaven— of our birth into the
life of glory. Let us therefore henceforth cele-
brate this festival in advance, as it were, by means
of the following exercises :

I. O Jesus, I adore Thee, I praise Thee, and I
glorify Thee a thousand times in the moment of
Thine entrance into Heaven ; and I offer Thee all the
joy Thou didst taste in that thrice-happy moment,
together with all the glory, love, and praise which
Thou didst then receive from Thy Father, Thy
Holy Spirit, from Thy blessed Mother, and from
all Thy Saints and Angels. I honour also Thy
blessed Mother in her entrance into Paradise. I
offer her all the joy she felt, all the glory and
praise she received from Thy Father, from Thee,
from Thy Holy Spirit, from all the Angels and
Saints. I offer also to Thee and to Thy blessed
Mother the entrance which I hope, by Thy great
mercy, to make one day into Paradise, in honour
of Thy glorious and triumphal entrv on the dav

What We should Do each Month 247

of Thine Ascension, and of hers on the day of her
Assumption. For it is thus, O my adorable Jesus,
that I desire to consecrate all which has been, is,
and shall be in me through time and eternity, in
honour and in homage to all- that has been, and
shall be, in Thee and in Thine honoured Mother.

2. 0 most admirable and most adorable Trinity,
I adore Thee, I bless Thee, and I glorify Thee
infinitely for all Thou art in Thy divine Essence
and perfections, in Thy three eternal Persons,
and in all the operations of Thy mercy and justice
with regard to me, to all Thy creatures in Heaven,
on earth, and in hell. I offer Thee all the adora-
tion, all the love, all the glory, praise, and blessing
which have been, are, and will be rendered to Thee
everlastingly. Ah, my God, how do I rejoice to
see Thee thus fulfilled with greatness, with marvels,
with glory, and with felicity ! Ah, that know-
ledge sufficeth me ! I desire no other glory, no
other joy, no other contentment throughout
eternity than the contemplation of the glory,
felicity, and contentment, passing all understand-
ing, of Him Whom I love more than myself. 0
my Glory and my Love, may all Heaven and
earth be transformed into glory and love for
Thee ! Lastly, I give and sacrifice myself wholly
to Thee, that Thou mayest plunge me in the pure
fire of Thy divine love, to be consumed therein
for ever.

3. 0 Jesus, only object of my love, what love,
what praise shall I render Thee for all Thou art
in Thyself and for all the innumerable effects of
Thy goodness towards all Thy creatures, and
especially towards me ? Lord, may all Thy
creatures, all Thy Angels and Saints, Thy holy
Mother, and all the faculties of Thy Divinity, of

248 The Reign of Jesus

Thy Humanity, be employed everlastingly in bles-
sing and in loving Thee.

4. O Mother of my God, O holy Angels, O blessed
Saints, I honour and thank you all, especially
those to whom I owe most and those with whom
I am destined to associate throughout eternity.
In thanksgiving for all the favours I have received
from you, and still more for the glory and service
you have rendered to my God, I offer to each and
all of you the most love-worthy heart of my
Jesus, the source of all joy, all glory, and all praise.
I give to you my spirit and my heart, unite them
henceforward to yours and make me a sharer in
all the love and praise which you offer unceasingly
to Him Who created me, that I may from hence-
forth bless and love Him through you until the
day shall come when it shall please Him to unite
me perfectly with you, that I may love and glorify
Him perfectly.

5. 0 blessed day in which I shall begin to love
most purely and most perfectly Him Who is
infinitely worthy of love ! 0 thrice-happy day in
which I shall begin to be all love for Him Who
is all love for me ! O Jesus, my sweet Love,
what joy for me to think that I shall love and
bless Thee everlastingly ! Verily mine eyes melt
into tears and my heart overflows with joy in the
sweetness of the thought that the day will come
in which I shall be wholly transformed into praise
and love for Thee. But alas ! when will it come,
that day so desirable and so long desired ? Will
it still tarry ? " Heu mihi quia incolatus meus
prolongatus est !" — " Alas ! must my dwelling in
this strange land be still prolonged." " Usquequo,
Domine, oblivisceris me in finem, usquequo avertis
faciam tuam a me ?" — " How long, Lord, wilt Thou

What We should Do each Month 249

forget me ? How long wilt Thou hide Thy face
from me?" " Quemadmodum desiderat cervus ad
fontes aquarum, ita desiderat anima mea ad te,
Deus !" — " Like as the hart thirsteth after the
water-brooks, so longeth my soul after Thee, O
God" (Ps. xli. 1).

In the meantime I desire, 0 my Saviour, to
realize this saying of Thine Apostle : " Our con-
versation is in Heaven " ; and this, which Thou
didst Thyself pronounce : " The kingdom of God
is within you." I desire to live on earth yet
as not of earth, but having my mind and heart
in Heaven. I desire to labour earnestly to es-
tablish in my heart the reign of Thy glory and of
Thy love.

But, Lord, Thou knowest that I can do naught
of myself. This is why I give myself to Thee,
that Thou mayst destroy in me all which is op-
posed to this desire, and that Thou mayst establish
perfectly the reign of Thy love in my body, in
my soul, and in my thoughts, words, and actions.

IV. Our Last Moments.

I will add here yet a few other counsels respecting
the dispositions you should strive to have when
you feel your life drawing to its close.

The chief thing you will have to do is to exercise
yourself as much as is possible to you in making
acts of love to Jesus, together with acts of humility ;
for there is no easier or more powerful means of
obtaining forgiveness of our sins, of advancing in
the heavenly path, or of giving content to God.

If you are haunted by the fear of death or by
misgivings on account of your past sins, ask to

250 The Reign of Jesus

have read to you what has been said about
trust.

If you can bear it, ask to have read to you from
time -to time the meditations on death, and the
exercises of praise to Jesus.

Read also a little in the " Lives of the Saints,"
or some other book ; but, above all, the Passion
of Jesus Christ, in the seventeenth chapter of the
Gospel of S. John, and the Prayers for the Dying.
Do not forget to remind those round you to give
you the means of gaining the plenary Indulgence
when your last moment approaches.

Hold frequently in your hands the crucifix, in
order that you may kiss it from time to time while
you make acts of love.

Let the holy Names of Jesus and Mary be always
in your heart, and often on your lips.

Lift up your heart continually to Jesus, and
say to Him with His beloved disciple : " Veni,
Domine Jesus ; veni, Domine Jesu " — " Come,
Lord Jesus " (Apoc. xxii. 20) ; and with S. Peter :
" Amo te, Domine Jesus, amo te, amo te " — " I
love Thee, Lord Jesus, I love Thee, I love Thee"
(S. John xxi. 15).

Say, also, with the repentant thief : " Memento
mei, Domine, dum veneris in regnum tuum "—
" Lord, remember me when Thou comest into
Thy kingdom " (S. Luke xxiii. 42) ; and unite
yourself to the contrition and love with which he
uttered these words, thus meriting to receive from
the lips of the Son of God this reply : " Verily I
say unto thee, to-day shalt thou be with Me in
Paradise " (S. Luke xxiii. 43).

Say with the poor publican in the Gospel :
" Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori " — " O God,
be merciful to me, a sinner " (S. Luke xviii. 23).

What We should Do each Month 251

Say also with David : " Miserere mei, Deus,
secundum magnam misericordiam tuam " — " Have
mercy on me, 0 God, after Thy great goodness "
(Ps. 1. 3). " Suscipe me secundum eloquium tuum
te vivam, et non confundas me ab expectatione
mea " — " Receive me according to Thy word, and
I shall live ; confound me not in mine expectation "
(Ps. cxviii. 116). " In te, Domine, speravi, non
confundar in aeternum " — " In Thee, 0 Lord, have
I put my trust ; I shall not be confounded for
ever" (Ps. lxx. 1).

Say with S. Francis : " Lord, deliver my soul
from the prison of this body, that I may praise
Thy holy Name with all the righteous who wait
for me in Heaven."

Say to the Blessed Virgin with Holy Church :
" Maria, Mater gratise, Mater misericordiae, tu nos
ab hoste protege, et hora mortis suscipe " — " 0
Mary, Mother of grace, Mother of mercy, defend
us against the enemy and receive us at the hour
of death." 0 Mother of Jesus, be the Mother of
my soul. " Monstra te esse matrem " — " Show
thyself to be my mother "; or, rather, " Monstra te
esse matrem Jesu," " Show thyself to be the
Mother of Jesus," by destroying in me, by thy
prayers and thy merits, all that is opposed to thy
Son Jesus, and by causing Him to be loved and
glorified in me perfectly.

Say also with S. Stephen : " Domine Jesu,
suscipe spiritum meum " — " Lord Jesus, receive
my spirit " (Acts vii. 58).

And in repeating these words and the preceding
ones, unite yourself to the devotion, to the love,
and to the other holy dispositions with which
they were uttered by these various persons.

Sav, too, with Jesus in the Garden of Olives :

252 The Reign of Jesus

" Pater, non mea voluntas, sed tua fiat " — " Father
not My will, but Thine, be done " (S. Luke xxii. 42);
and with Jesus, dying on the Cross : " Pater, in
manus tuas commendo spiritum meum " — " Father
into Thy hands I commend My Spirit."

You may also make use of these short aspira-
tions :

" O Jesus, love Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit
for me."

" 0 Father of Jesus, O Holy Spirit of Jesus,
O Mother of Jesus, O Angels and Saints of Jesus,
love Jesus for me."

" Volo, Domine Jesu, te regnare super me " —
" I will have Thee, O Lord Jesus, to reign over
me."

" Dominare in medio inimicorum tuorum " —
" O Lord Jesus, reign in me in spite of all Thine
enemies."

" 0 my dear Jesus, be to me Jesus ; O my All,
be to me all in the past, in the present, in the
future."

' Unum necessarium, unum volo, unum qusero,
unum amo ' — ' One thing alone is necessary ; I
long for one thing alone ; I ask for one thing alone ;
I love one thing alone.' One thing alone is
necessary to me. Farewell, all the rest. I desire
henceforth one thing alone, I seek one thing alone,
I love one thing alone, which is all to me while
all else is naught. It is Jesus Whom I desire ; it is
Jesus Whom I long for ; it is Jesus Whom I seek ;
it is Jesus Whom I love, and Whom I desire to love
with all the love of Heaven and earth."

'Jesus meus est omnia '— ' My Jesus is all
to me.' Farewell once more, all that is not Jesus.
Jesus sufficeth me ; I desire naught but Jesus on
earth and in Heaven."

What We should Do each Month 253

" Veni, Domine Jesu " — " Come, Lord Jesus.
Come into me, that Thou mayst love Thyself per-
fectly in me."

" O Jesus, my All, be Thou my preparation and
my disposition 'for death. 0 Jesus, I give myself
to Thee to die with Thee, in Thee, and for Thee."

" 0 Jesus, I give myself to Thee, that Thou
mayst unite me at the moment of my death to all
the dispositions of love and holiness with which
Thou, Thy blessed Mother, Thy holy Martyrs,
and all Thy other Saints, did die."

" 0 Jesus, give me, I beseech Thee, Thy holy
benediction."

" 0 Mary, Mother of Jesus, give me also, I be-
seech thee, thy holy benediction."

Lastly, strive that the last words you speak be :
" Jesus ! Mary !" or else : " 0 Jesus, be my Jesus !"

You may thus converse quietly and holily with
our Lord by means of these frequent elevations.
But in order that He may grant you the grace to
make use of them when you are on the point of
death, accustom yourself to say these words often
during your life, and especially at night before
going to sleep, using sometimes one, sometimes
another, as the Spirit of God shall guide you.

It would be a good thing, also, to beg those
round you, and those who tend you in your sick-
ness, to read to you very often these acts and
aspirations ; and to beg them, if you should lose
the power of speech, not to cease to make these
acts and aspirations for you, even if you should
no longer have the use of your reason. Our Lord
will regard them and accept them as if you made
them yourself, for they will be made at your
request and in your name.

Beseech also the blessed Virgin, your guardian

254 The Reign of Jesus

Angel, and your patron Saint, to do in your name
that which they know God requires of you in the
last day of your life. But, above all, beg Jesus
to do it for you. Have absolute confidence in His
infinite goodness, trusting in Him to be all and
to do all for you.

I beg you to note well this last point. For,
though you should endeavour, by means of these
exercises, to prepare yourself for death as carefully
and as devoutly as you can, yet, having done all
that has been suggested, you must not put your
trust in your own acts, exercises, and preparations,
but rather in the pure goodness and mercy of our
Lord Jesus Christ, beseeching Him to be Himself
your preparation, your virtue, your sanctification
and your all.

V. The Saint of the Month.

It is a most pious practice to choose each month
a Saint whom we shall pray every day to love
our Lord for us, to help us to love Him, and to
make reparation for the negligences of which we
shall be guilty during the month. It is well also
to love and glorify our Lord in this Saint, unite
ourselves to the praise given by him to our Lord,
and to imitate his actions and the virtue he prac-
tised for the glory of God.

With respect to the cultus of the Saints, I offer
you here some advice.

We should have devotion to all the Saints and
Angels, especially to our guardian-Angel and to
the Saint whose name we bear, to the Saints who
companied with our Lord on earth, to the order of
Angels and Saints with whom we are to be asso-

What We should Do each Month 255

ciated in Heaven, to the patron Saints and Angels
of the places where we live or through which we pass,
and of the persons with whom we come in contact.

We should honour them because Jesus loves and
honours them : " Quicumque glorificaverit me,
glorificabo eum " — " Whoso glorifieth Me, him also
will I glorify " (1 Kings ii. 30) ; because the Eternal
Father honours those who serve His Son : " Whoso
serve th Me, shall be honoured of My Father,"
saith the Son of God (S. John xii. 26) ; and also
because they love and serve Jesus, because they
are His friends, His servants, His children, His
members — as it were, a part of Himself ; and
because to honour them is to honour our Lord
Himself, for He is all in them.

For this reason we should look upon their relics
as being a part of the members of Jesus, and
honour them accordingly ; we should bear them
about with us in union with the love with which
from all eternity He bears His Saints in His
bosom and in His heart ; and as a way of uniting
ourselves to the love and praise which these Saints
have rendered, do, and will render to Him for
ever.

In order to honour the Saints as we ought —

I. We should adore Jesus in them, for He is all
in them : " Omnia in omnibus " — " All in all "
(Eph. i. 23). He is their very being, their life,
their holiness, their felicity, their glory. We should
thank Him for the glory and praise which He has
procured to Himself in them and through them —
thank Him for this even more than for the grace
which He has bestowed on them, because the
interests of God should be dearer to us than our
own. We should offer Him all the honour and all
the love which His Saints have rendered to Him,

256 The Reign of Jesus

and pray Him to make us participate in their love
and in their other virtues.

In conformity with this practice, when we go on
some pilgrimage, when we communicate, say Mass,
or perform any other action in honour of a Saint,
we should offer it to Jesus with these intentions.

2. When we address the Saints, we should
humble ourselves before them, esteeming ourselves
unworthy to think of them, or that they should
think of us ; we should thank them for the services
and for the glory they have rendered to our Lord ;
we should offer ourselves to them, and pray them
to offer us to Jesus and to beseech Him to destroy
in us all that is displeasing to Him, and to make
us sharers in the grace He has showered on them.
We should also implore them to honour and love
Jesus for us, and to render Him a hundredfold
in our stead, all the love and glory which we ought
to have rendered Him throughout our life ; to
associate us with the honour and praise which
they render Him in Heaven, and to make use
of us for His honour and glory in every way
pleasing to them.

3. When we are travelling, and pass through a
town or village, or when we make a halt in some
place in order to sojourn or rest there, it is well
to salute the protecting Saints and Angels of the
place ; to pray our guardian- Angel to salute them
in our name ; and ask their permission, as lords
of the place, to pass through it or to sojourn there.
For we should remember that they might justly
forbid us all entrance or passage, because we are
sinners and unworthy that the earth should bear
us, and because there is even reason to fear that
our sins may draw down from God some chastise-
ment or curse on the place in which we dwell or

What We should Do each Month 257

through which we pass. For this reason we may
well imitate S. Dominic, who, on entering a town,
was in the habit of praying God not to destroy it
on account of his sins. In the same way, it is
well to pray the protecting Angels and Saints of
the district to glorify and love our Lord for us,
and to make amends for our negligences during our
sojourn.

When we have any dealings with a person, it is a
most holy practice to salute his guardian Angel
and his patron Saint, praying them to incline the
person towards what most conduces to the glory
of God in the matter of which we have to treat
with him.

It is also excellent to choose at the Feast of All
Saints a particular order of Saints, and on
S. Michael's day a particular choir of Angels, in
order that we may honour them, or, rather, that
we may honour Jesus more especially in them
during the year.

These are the choirs of Angels and the orders
of Saints :

Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominations,
Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, Angels ;
holy Patriarchs, holy Prophets, holy Apostles,
holy Martyrs, holy Confessors, holy Virgins, holy
Widows, holy Innocents.

Prayer to S. John the Evangelist, which may be used
also J or any other Saint.

0 blessed Apostle and Evangelist S. John, I
adore and honour Jesus in Thee, and I honour
and revere thee in Jesus in every way possible to
me. I thank thee with all my heart for all the
love and service which thou hast ever rendered to

17

258 The Reign of Jesus

my Saviour. I offer myself to thee ; offer me, I
pray thee, give me to Jesus for ever. Destroy in
me, by thy prayers and thy merits, all that is
opposed to His glory. Make use of me, I beseech
thee, as of a thing which is entirely in thy hands,
in order to glorify and love Him in every way
pleasing to thee. Make me to share thy most pure
love for Him ; love and glorify Him in my name.
Make, I beseech thee, reparation for my lack of
love, and render Him a hundredfold all the love
and honour which I owe Him. Unite me to all
the love and praise which thou hast given and
will give Him eternally. Ask Him to grant that
I may live only for His love ; that I may die a
thousand deaths, were it • possible, rather than
offend Him ; and that all in me may be trans-
formed into praise and love for Him ; and, lastly,
that I may die in the exercise of His most pure
love.

IV

WHAT WE SHOULD DO EACH YEAR

The Mysteries of Jesus in the Yearly
Liturgical Cycle.

anniversaries — renovations.

" Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to-day, and for
ever " (Heb. xiii. 8).

" This day shall be a memorial unto you, and ye shall
celebrate it by a perpetual worship as a solemn feast
to the glory of God " (Exod. xii. 14).

SUMMARY.

The Blessed Jean Eudes offers us a series of pious exer-
cises :

1 . For the sanctification of the first day of the year.

2. For the honouring of the mysteries of Jesus in the
liturgical order.

3. For the worthy celebration of the anniversary of our
birth.

4. For the renewing of the contract made with God on
the day of our Baptism.

5. For a Retreat of a few days' duration.

6. For closing the year in a holy manner.

I. Exercise for the Beginning of the
Year.

The great Apostle S. Paul affirms to us that

" Jesus Christ died for all ; that they who live

may live not to themselves, but to Him Who died

for them "; that He died for us that, " whether

259

260 The Reign of Jesus

we wake or whether we sleep, we should live unto
Him " (i Cor. xv.). And this same Jesus Christ
assures us that His delight is to be with the chil-
dren of men. For this reason, in order that we
may not deprive Him of this delight, or of the
effect of His most holy death, we ought to find
our joy and content in intercourse with Him ; we
ought to invent all kinds of pious methods of
being always with Him, so that we may never
lose sight of Him ; that we may have Him as our
aim and object in all things ; that we may wake
and sleep, live and die, in His company ; that we
may begin and end with Him our life, each year,
each month, and each day.

In order to begin each year of our life with Jesus,
we must begin it as Jesus began His mortal suffer-
ing life on earth. We should, then, at the begin-
ning of each year, spend a little while at the feet
of Jesus, and render Him our duty and homage.

ELEVATION FOR CONSECRATING THE YEAR TO
JESUS.

0 Jesus, my Saviour, I adore Thee, I bless Thee,
and I love Thee, with all my strength in the first
moment of Thy suffering mortal life on earth.

1 adore all the holy thoughts, feelings, and dis-
positions of Thy divine Soul, and all which took
place in Thee in that first moment.

0 admirable Jesus, I see that, from the first
instant of Thy mortal life, Thou dost turn towards
Thine eternal Father, in order to adore, love, and
glorify Him, to refer to Him Thy being and Thy
life, together with all depending thereon. I see
that Thou dost give Thyself to Him, prepared to
do and to suffer all it shall please Him for His

What We should Do each Year 261

glory and for our love. I see, too, that, in this
same instant, Thou dost turn Thy mind and Thy
heart towards me, thinking of me, loving me, form-
ing great purposes with regard to my soul, pre-
paring for me special graces.

Blessed be Thou, 0 good Jesus, for all these
things, and may all creatures in Heaven and earth,
may all the faculties of Thy Divinity and Thy
Humanity, bless Thee eternally therefor.

0 Jesus, I give myself to Thee, that Thou mayst
enable me to begin this year as Thou didst begin
Thy life on earth, and to share the holy disposi-
tions with which Thou didst accomplish all these
things ; imprint them in me, I beseech Thee, for
Thy mercy's sake.

0 most adorable Jesus, in honour of, and in
union with, the humility, love, and the other holy
dispositions, with which Thou didst adore and love
Thine eternal Father, and didst give Thyself to
Him in the first moment of Thy life, I adore Thee,
I love Thee, and I glorify Thee as my God and my
Saviour, as the Author of time, the King of years —
He Who bought for me at the cost of His Blood
all the years, days, hours, and minutes which I
have to live on earth.

0 Jesus, I offer and consecrate to Thee all my
moments, hours, days, and years, my being, and
my life, with all depending thereon, protesting to
Thee that I desire to use all these things solely for
Thy glory ; that I desire that all my thoughts,
words, actions, heart-beats, each breath I draw,
all that shall take place in me during this year and
throughout my life, shall be so many acts of praise
and love to Thee. Accomplish this by Thy might
and goodness, O my dear Jesus, I beseech Thee.

1 offer Thee also, O Jesus, all the love and glory

262 The Reign of Jesus

which shall be rendered Thee, and I associate
myself with all the honour and praise which shall
be given Thee during this year and for ever, by
Thine eternal Father, by Thy Holy Spirit, Thy
blessed Mother, Thine Angels and Saints, and by
all Thy creatures.

0 most love-worthy Jesus, I adore all the pur-
poses which Thou dost deign to have with regard
to me for this year. Permit me not, I beseech
Thee, to act in opposition to them. I give myself
to Thee, ready to do and suffer all it shall please
Thee, for the accomplishment of these Thy pur-
poses. In union with the love with which Thou
didst accept, from the moment of Thine Incarna-
tion, all the suffering Thou wert destined to endure
throughout Thy life, I accept and embrace from
henceforth, for love of Thee, all the suffering,
whether of body or mind, which I may have to
endure during this year and throughout my life.

O my Saviour, there will come a year which will
be the last of my life — perchance it is this very
year. Oh ! were I sure of that being so, how
carefully and fervently should I spend it in Thy
service ! But, be that as it may, I purpose to
consider this year as the last of my life, and I
desire to employ it as if there remained only that
space of time in which to love and glorify Thee in
this world and in which to repair my past negli-
gences in Thy holy love. Grant me, I beseech
Thee, 0 good Jesus, the grace I need for this.

ELEVATION TO MARY.

O holy Virgin, Mother of my God and Saviour,
I honour and revere thee, as much as I can and
ought, from the first moment of thy life. I honour

What We should Do each Year 263

and revere all the dispositions of thy holy soul,
and all that took place in thee at that instant.

In that first moment, 0 holy Virgin, thou didst
begin to love and glorify God most perfectly, and
from the first moment to the last of thy life thou
didst glorify and love Him ever more and more.
And I, after all the years I have passed on earth,
I have not yet begun to love and serve Him as I
ought.

O Mother of mercy, beg Thy Son to have mercy
on me. Supply, I beseech thee, what is lacking
in me ; offer to Him, in my name, all the love
and glory thou hast rendered Him, in satisfaction
for my negligences. Make me to share in the
faithful love thou bearest Him. Pray for me that
He may grant me grace to begin, henceforward,
to love Him perfectly, and that all which may
befall me this year may be consecrated to His glory
and to thy honour.

Angels and Saints of Jesus, pray for me that
Jesus may give me fresh grace, and a new love
for Him ; that I may employ this year and all
my life in the sole service of His glory and His
love.

II. The Liturgical Year.

EXPLANATION.

Holy Church is the true kingdom of Jesus. In the cycle
of her liturgical year she lives again all the mysteries
of Jesus — the mysteries of the promise and of the await-
ing ; the mysteries of the birth, of the childhood, of the
hidden and public life, of the Passion, of the Resurrection,
and Ascension ; the mysteries of the sending of the Holy
Spirit, and of the life of Jesus in the Church and in the
Saints.

The Blessed Jean Eudes sets forth the reasons for
honouring all these mysteries of Jesus, the manner of so

264 The Reign of Jesus

doing, and the order we should follow. We must en-
deavour to find a favourable moment for so doing.

1 . We must try to spare a short time either on the eve
of the feast of the mystery, or on the day itself, or during
the octave.

2. As Sunday is the day more especially devoted to
the service of God, we should reserve half an hour either
before Mass or after Vespers in order to think of the
mystery of the day, or else employ in this way the time of
our usual meditation.

THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS I OBLIGATION OF
HONOURING THEM.

We are under so many and such deep obliga-
tions to honour and love Jesus, in Himself and
in all the states and mysteries of His life, that he
who should undertake to enumerate them would
undertake a thing which is impossible. Neverthe-
less, I will point out a few of them.

In the first place, as we have to continue and
complete in ourselves the life, virtues, and actions
of Jesus on earth, so we should continue and com-
plete in ourselves the states and mysteries of
Jesus, praying Him, too, to continue and complete
them in us and in His whole Church. For it
is a truth which is worthy of our notice and of our
meditation, that the mysteries of Jesus have not
yet obtained their entire perfection and fulfilment.
For if they are perfect and complete in the Person
of Jesus, they are not so in us who are His mem-
bers, nor in His Church, which is His mystical
Body. The Son of God purposes to produce in
us and in His whole Church a participation — an
extension and continuation, as it were — of the
mysteries of His Incarnation, His birth, his child-
hood, His hidden life, His evangelistic life, of His
life of labour, of His Passion, of His Death, and

What We should Do each Year 265

of all His other mysteries. He does this by the
graces which He communicates to us, and by the
effects which He produces in us, by these mysteries ;
and it is by these means that He wills to fulfil
them in us.

For this reason S. Paul says that he accom-
plishes in his body the Passion of Jesus Christ.
Now, what he says of the Passion may be
said also of the other states and mysteries of
Jesus.

This, then, is the Will of the Son of God :

1. He purposes to accomplish in us the divine
life which He possessed from all eternity in the
bosom of the Father, by imprinting in us a
participation in this life, and making us live
with Him a life all pure and divine.

2. He purposes to accomplish in us the state
of His suffering and mortal life, causing us to live
on earth, by the aid of His grace, a suffering and
mortal life which shall be an imitation and a
glorification of His.

3. He purposes to complete in us the mysteries
of His Incarnation, birth, and hidden life, by
forming Himself and becoming, so to say, incar-
nate in us, being born in us by the Sacraments of
Baptism and of the Eucharist, and in causing us
to live a spiritual and interior life, hidden with
Him in God.

4. He purposes to perfect in us the mystery of
His Passion, Death, and Resurrection, by causing
us to suffer, die, and rise again with Him and in
Him.

5. He purposes to accomplish in us the state of
His glorious and immortal life in Heaven, by
causing us to live with Him and in Him, when we
reach Heaven, a glorious and immortal life.

266 The Reign of Jesus

6. Lastly, He purposes to fulfil and accomplish
in us, and in His Church, all His other states and
mysteries, by a communication and participation
which He desires to confer on us, and by a con-
tinuation and extension which He desires to pro-
duce in us, of these states and mysteries.

Now, this purpose of the Son of God will not
be fully accomplished before the Day of Judgment,
but our life on earth is given us solely that we may
employ it in helping forward the accomplishment
of these great purposes of Jesus. For this reason
we ought to employ all our time, our days and
our years, in co-operating with Jesus in this divine
labour of the accomplishment of His mysteries in
us. We should co-operate in it by our good deeds,
by our prayers, and by frequently contemplating,
honouring, and adoring the different states and
mysteries of Jesus during the various seasons of
the year, and by giving ourselves to Him, in order
that He may operate in us by these same mys-
teries all He desires for His glory.

By acting thus we forward the glory of God,
because —

1. We imitate our heavenly Father, for He is
ever occupied in contemplating, glorifying, and
loving His Son Jesus ; in causing Him to be loved
and glorified, both in His divine Person and in all
His states and mysteries.

2. We attach ourselves to that which most
forwards the glory of God, for He has never been
more greatly loved and glorified than in the states
and mysteries of Jesus.

3. We enter into the spirit of Holy Church,
who invites us in her prayers and in her Liturgy
to adore and glorify these states and mysteries of
Jesus.

What We should Do each Year 267

4. We fulfil our duty to Jesus, the sovereign
Lord. Jesus is all great ; the greatness of Jesus
is infinite and incomprehensible. He is great in
all His states and all His mysteries, and merits
on account of them infinite honour and glory.

5. We fulfil the purpose for which we are on
the earth — that of knowing and loving Jesus in His
life and in His mysteries. " And this is life
eternal, to know Thee, the only true God, and
Jesus Christ, Whom Thou hast sent " (S. John
xvii. 3).

We should therefore arrange our time and our
religious exercises in such a manner as to honour
the entire life of Jesus — all the states and mys-
teries of His life — in the course of the year. We
may do so by following the order here given.

THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS I THE ORDER IN
WHICH WE SHOULD HONOUR THEM.

I. October and November. — Beginning with the
first of all the states of Jesus, which is the state
of His divine life from all eternity in the bosom
of the Father, it is well to honour it during the
time which precedes Advent, so that we may adore
Jesus in the life He enjoyed in the bosom of His
Father from all eternity, before adoring Him in
the life He possessed in the womb of the blessed
Virgin when the fulness of time was come. Now,
I understand by the time which precedes Advent
the months of October and November.

I reserve, however, the last two weeks of Novem-
ber for honouring the life of Jesus in the world
before His Incarnation, during the five thousand
years which elapsed between the creation of the
world and the Incarnation of its Creator. For

268 The Reign of Jesus

during this time, Jesus was, in a way, living in the
minds and hearts of the Angels, of the Patriarchs,
of the Prophets, and of all the righteous, who knew
He was to come into the world, who loved Him,
longed for Him, awaited Him, and prayed God
continually to hasten His coming. He was living,
too, in the same way, in the souls of the righteous
in Limbus. So, too, He was living in the Mosaic
Law, which was composed solely for the purpose of
prefiguring and announcing Him, of disposing the
world to believe in Him, and to receive Him when
He should come.

2. Advent. — During Advent we should honour
the mystery of the Incarnation, and of the abode
of Jesus in the womb of Mary for the space of nine
months.

3. Christmastide. — From Christmas to the Puri-
fication we should honour the holy childhood of
Jesus, and all the mysteries included in that
period, such as the birth, the dwelling in the
stable at Bethlehem, the Circumcision, the Epi-
phany, His Presentation in the Temple, His flight
into Egypt and His sojourn there till the age of
seven, His return from Egypt to Nazareth, His
life at Nazareth, His journey to the Temple at
Jerusalem with His holy Mother and S. Joseph,
His loss, His finding amongst the doctors.

4. From the Purification to Lent. — From the
Purification to Ash Wednesday we should honour
the hidden and laborious life of Jesus passed with
His blessed Mother and S. Joseph.

5. During Lent. — From Ash Wednesday to the
first Sunday in Lent we should honour the Bap-
tism of Jesus in the Jordan ; the manifestation of
Him by the voice of God the Father, saying,
" This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well

What We should Do each Year 269

pleased/' by the descent of the Holy Spirit in the
form of a dove, and by the witness of S. John
Baptist.

During the first week of Lent we should honour
the solitary life of Jesus in the desert.

During the second we should honour His public
life, spent in intercourse with men from the age
of thirty to His death. The Church herself leads
us to honour this public life of Jesus by means of
the Gospels she recites each day of Lent. How-
ever, as a week is too short a time to devote to
honouring the public life, and as we cannot give
more time to it during Lent on account of the
other mysteries which we have to honour then,
we will devote a little more time to it after the
Feast of Corpus Christi.

The four other weeks of Lent shall be dedicated
in honour of the life of penance of Jesus, which con-
sists of four elements : His humiliations, His priva-
tions, His bodily and His mental sufferings. During
the first of these four weeks we shall honour all the
humiliations which Jesus had to endure through-
out His life. During the second, His privations
both moral and physical. During the third, His
bodily and mental sufferings.

On Maundy Thursday we shall honour the insti-
tution of the Holy Eucharist by Jesus, and the
washing of the Apostles' feet.

From Good Friday to the morning of Easter
Day we shall adore Jesus in His languor, in His
agony, on the Cross, in His death, in the descent
of His Soul into Hell, and in the burial of His
Body.

6. Eastertide. — On Easter Day we should honour
the Resurrection of Jesus and His entrance on the
glorious life ; so, too, all the other Sundays of the

270 The Reign of Jesus

year should be devoted to honouring the Resurrec-
tion of Jesus.

From Easter Day to the Ascension we shall
honour the glorious life of Jesus and His sojourn
on earth after His Resurrection.

7. Ascensiontide. — From Ascension Day to Pen-
tecost we shall honour the glorious life of Jesus in
Heaven since His Ascension — that is to say, for
more than eighteen hundred years. We should
also honour this glorious life of Jesus on all the
Sundays of the year.

8. From Pentecost to the Feast oj the Blessed
Trinity we shall honour the life of the Holy Trinity
in Jesus, and the life of Jesus in the Blessed
Trinity. We should also honour this mystery each
Sunday in the year, as well as the mystery of the
Resurrection and of the glorious life of Jesus.

The three days following Trinity Sunday shall
be dedicated in honour of the three divine Persons :
Monday in honour of the Father, Tuesday of the
Son, and Wednesday of the Holy Ghost.

9. Corpus Christi. — During the octave of the
Feast of the Blessed Sacrament, as also on the
Thursday in each week, we shall honour the life
of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist.

10. The Public Life of Jesus. — The time' which
elapses between the octave of Corpus Christi and
the month of August shall be divided into two
parts, of which the first shall be dedicated in
honour of the public and evangelistic life of Jesus.

11. The Glorious Life of Jesus. — The second
period shall be employed in honouring the mys-
tery of the second advent of Jesus, and of the
universal judgment which will take place at the
end of time. This is one of the mysteries of the
glorious life of Jesus which the Church places in

What We should Do each Year 271

the Creed after the Ascension and the session of
Jesus at the right hand of the Father.

12. The Divine Life of Jesus. — During the month
of August we shall honour in the person of Jesus —

(1) His Divinity or divine Essence, which He
possesses in common with the Father and the Holy
Spirit, and in consequence of which He is God, as
the Father and the Holy Spirit are God — God
infinite, incomprehensible, eternal, immortal,
almighty, all- wise, all-good, adorned with all the
perfections which exist in the divine Essence.

(2) His divine Person, which is proper to Him,
and by which He is the Son of God, the Word, the
image and splendour of the Father, and the divine
model after which the Father hath fashioned all
things.

(3) His holy Soul, with all her faculties : her
memory, her understanding, and her will.

(4) His sacred Body, with all its members and
senses. Above all, his precious Blood and His
divine Heart merit special honour.

13. The Royalty of Jesus. — During the month of
September we shall honour the seven empires of
Jesus, as follows :

(1) The empire of Jesus in the natural world,
with the four elements of earth, air, fire, and water,
and all the natural things which are in the world.

(2) The empire of Jesus in the spiritual and
mystical world — that is to say, in the Church
Militant.

(3) The empire of Jesus over Death, with regard
to which His sovereignty, His justice, His eternity,
His death, and His immortal life merit to be
honoured.

(4) The empire of Jesus in the particular judg-
ment, which He exercises every day and every

272 The Reign of Jesus

hour on the souls which leave this world, and in
which His justice, His equity, His truth, His power,
and His divine majesty deserve all honour.

(5) The empire of Jesus in the suffering Church
— that is to say, in Purgatory — where His divine
Will, His justice, His goodness, and His sufferings
are unceasingly glorified.

(6) The empire of Jesus in Hell, where all His
divine perfections and all His mysteries are
honoured in a way at once awful and admirable.

(7) The empire of Jesus in the Church Trium-
phant, which is in Heaven.

These are the seven empires of Jesus, which we
may honour during the month of September. I
give them the name of empires, because Jesus is
reigning and triumphant in all these places and
over all these things, and because they are filled
with the glory, the honour, the power, and the
presence, and the majesty of Jesus.

On the Feasts of the Blessed Virgin and every
Saturday, we shall honour the life of Jesus in the
Blessed Virgin, and all the marvels and mysteries
which He has accomplished in her.

On the Feasts of Angels and Saints, celebrated
in the course of the year, we shall honour the life
of Jesus in them.

THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS I SEVEN ELEMENTS TO
BE CONSIDERED IN EACH MYSTERY.

In each of the mysteries of Jesus there are seven
elements to be considered : —

(1) The outward part of the mystery ; (2) the
inward part of the mystery ; (3) the effects of the
mystery in general ; (4) the particular effects of
the mystery '; (5) the relation of the mystery to

What We should Do each Year 273

Mary ; (6) the relation of the mystery to the Angels
and Saints ; (7) our share in the mystery.

Amongst the infinity of marvels contained in
each mystery of the life of Jesus there are seven
chief things which you should consider and honour
in each of them, and the knowledge of- which will
give you much light, expansion, and facility.

The first is the body, or outward part of the
mystery — that is to say, all the external circum-
stances connected with it. For instance, in the
mystery of the birth of Jesus the external circum-
stances are the nakedness, the poverty, the cold,
the weakness, and the littleness in which He was
born ; the swaddling clothes in which He was
wrapped ; His resting-place of hay in the manger
between the ox and the ass ; His tears and childish
cries ; the feeble movements of His sacred hands
and feet ; the first use He made of His eyes, of His
mouth, and of His other senses ; the slumber which
He enjoyed on the bosom of His blessed Mother ; the
nourishment He drew from her breast ; the tender
kisses and embraces He received from her and from
S. Joseph ; the visit of the shepherds ; all which
was said and done externally in the stable of Bethle-
hem on the night of the birth of the Son of God.

This is what I call the body, the outward part of
the mystery of the birth of Jesus. It is the same
with all the other mysteries. All that took place, all
that was said, done, and suffered externally, either
by the Son of God or by the other persons, whether
Angels or men, who had a share in the mystery — ■
all this is its body, or outward part. And all these
things merit consideration and honour, for there is
nothing unimportant in the mysteries of Jesus, but
all in them is great, divine, and adorable.

And if the Son of God condescends to employ

18

274 The Reign of Jesus

His mind and His divine heart (which should, one
would think, be solely occupied with the Divinity
Itself) in considering and in counting our very
steps and the hairs of our head, as He assures us
Himself that He does (S. Matt. x. 30) ; and in
noticing, inscribing in His heart, and placing
amongst His treasures, the least action performed
for love of Him, in order to honour and glorify it
for ever in Heaven ; how much more should we
devote our minds and hearts to considering, adoring,
and glorifying all the slightest circumstances of
His life and of His mysteries — all the more that all
in them is infinitely noble and admirable, and
merits infinite honour and adoration.

The second thing which we have to consider and
honour in each mystery of the Son of God is the
spirit, or inward part of the mystery — that is to
say, the virtue, power, and the special grace
dwelling in the mystery, and which is proper to it.
It also includes the thoughts and intentions, the
affections, feelings, and the interior dispositions
with which it was accomplished. In a word, it
consists of all that happened internally in the holy
mind and heart of Jesus when He accomplished
the mystery, and in the mind and heart of all the
persons present.

For instance, I call spirit, soul, inward part of
the mysteries of the Son of God, all that took place
in Him, such as the thoughts of His mind, the
affections and feelings of His heart, His disposi-
tions of humility, charity, submission, gentleness,
patience, and all the other virtues which He prac-
tised in each mystery ; His intimate communica-
tions with His eternal Father, with Himself, with
His Holy Spirit, with His blessed Mother, with His
Angels and Saints, with mankind in general, and

What We should Do each Year 275

with each of us in particular ; and in addition to
all this the power, the virtue, and the grace which
He manifested in each mystery.

This soul of the mystery is what should be chiefly
considered and honoured in the mysteries of Jesus,
and often this is not the case, for many people are
content to contemplate the body or outward part
of a mystery without passing on to the soul or
inward part. Nevertheless, it is the soul, the
inward part, which is the principal thing — the root,
the substance, the life, and the truth of the
mystery ; the body, or outward part, is, as it
were, the shell, the appearance, the accidental and
accessory part. The outward part, the body, is
fleeting and temporary ; but the inward part, the
virtue, the grace which dwells in each mystery, is
permanent and real.

The third thing which we should honour in the
mysteries of Jesus is the effect which He pro-
duced, and which He produces perpetually, by
each one of them ; for the Son of God is called in
Holy Scripture the Lamb offered from the be-
ginning of the world (Apoc. xiii. 8), because from
the beginning of the world He has produced, as
He produces at the present time by means of His
Incarnation, of His death, and of all His other
mysteries, admirable effects of glory, felicity, light,
grace, mercy, justice, and fear in Heaven, earth,
and hell, on mankind, on the Angels, and on all-
created beings.

The fourth thing we have to honour in the
mysteries of Jesus is the particular purpose which
He had in each one of them ; for in each mystery
He had a particular purpose, such as the glorifica-
tion of His Father, the sanctification of souls, and
many others of which we are ignorant.

276 The Reign of Jesus

The fifth thing to consider and to honour in each
of the mysteries of Jesus is the share the blessed
Virgin had in it and the part she played therein ;
for she had a special and extraordinary share in
all the states and mysteries of her Son. She alone
had in them a greater share than all the Angels,
Saints, and the whole world united together,
because the Son of God wrought in her by each of
His mysteries, marvels greater and more admirable
than any which He wrought in the Angels, in the
Saints, or in any other created being. Besides,
the blessed Virgin has, in her own person, rendered
more honour to the mysteries of her Son than all the
Angels and Saints and the whole world combined.

The sixth thing to be considered and honoured
in each of the mysteries of Jesus is the share
therein of the Angels and Saints belonging in a
special way to it ; for each mystery of Jesus has
its particular Angels and Saints who are attached
and dedicated to it in a special way.

For instance, the Saints and Angels of the In-
carnation are the blessed Virgin, S. Joseph,
S. Gabriel, all the Saints who have ever had a
special devotion for this mystery, and probably
the order of Seraphim, for the mystery of the
Incarnation is a mystery of love.

The Saints and Angels of the birth of Jesus are
the blessed Virgin, S. Joseph, S. Gabriel, the holy
shepherds, and the Saints who have had a special
devotion for this mystery, such as S. Bernard, and
many others.

The Saints and Angels of the mystery of the
childhood of Jesus are, again, the blessed Virgin,
S. Joseph, and S. Gabriel, who have their part in
all the mysteries of the Son of God. And, besides,
S. John Baptist, who was sanctified by the Child

What We should Do each Year 277

Jesus ; S. Zacharias and S. Elizabeth ; S. Simeon
the Just, who received the Child Jesus in his arms
the day of the Presentation ; S. Anne, the pro-
phetess, who was also in the Temple on that occa-
sion, and who also, we may believe, took Him in
her arms ; the holy Magi ; the Holy Innocents,
whether martyrs or no ; all the guardian Angels of
these Saints ; and many other Saints and Angels
unknown to us.

The Saints and Angels of the hidden life of Jesus
are the blessed Virgin and S. Joseph, S. Gabriel
and S. John Baptist.

The Saints and Angels of the public life of Jesus
are all the Apostles and disciples, all the Saints
with whom He held intercourse during that time,
as also the guardian Angels of these Saints.

The Saints and Angels of the mysteries of the
Passion, of the Cross, and of the death of Jesus
are especially the blessed Virgin, S. Gabriel,
S. John the Evangelist, S. Magdalene, S. Martha,
S. Mary Salome, the other holy women who were
at the foot of the Cross, all the holy martyrs, and
all the Saints who have had a special devotion for
these mysteries.

The seventh thing we sfiould consider and venerate
in the mysteries of Jesus is our own particular and
special share in them ; for we have a special share
in each, and the Son of God in each of His mysteries
had a thought, a purpose, a love for each one of
us. He had the purpose of communicating thereby
to us a special grace and special favours on earth
and in Heaven, and this obliges us, on our side,
to do particular honour to each and all of His
mysteries.

278 The Reign of Jesus

THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS ! MANNER OF
HONOURING THEM.

The mysteries of Jesus being so admirable and
so worthy of honour, and we ourselves being under
so great an obligation to honour them, we ought
to spare no pains in doing so in every possible way.
I here propose to you seven methods of doing so :

1. By the thoughts, reflections, affections, dis-
positions, and interior acts of our mind and our
heart, which we should occupy in contemplating,
considering, adoring, and glorifying these mys-
teries.

2. By our words and conversations, for all con-
versation and intercourse which Christians have
one with another on earth should have no subject
save Jesus, the virtues and mysteries of Jesus, as
they will have none other in Heaven.

3. By all our exercises and external acts of
religion, such as saying or assisting at Mass, by
communicating, by making our confession, by
reciting the Divine Office, and by all our other
devotional exercises. We can also offer to Jesus
in honour of the mystery we wish to celebrate all
the ordinary actions of the day. For instance, if we
desire to honour the mystery of the Incarnation ;
we can say : " O Jesus, I offer Thee this divine
Sacrifice of the Mass, this Holy Communion, and
all the other actions which I shall perform this day,
in honour of the most adorable mystery of Thine
Incarnation."

4. By exercises of humility, mortification, and
penance, offering them to Jesus with the same
intention.

5. By imitation, endeavouring to imitate in what

What We should Do each Year 279

is imitable and to reproduce in ourselves the
mystery we desire to honour. For example, if
we have to honour the mystery of the childhood
of Jesus we should try and imitate Him in the
simplicity, humility, gentleness, obedience, purity,
and innocence of His holy childhood, and to im-
print thus in ourselves the image of the childhood
of Jesus. And this is assuredly one of the best
ways of honouring the mysteries of Jesus.

6. By our state or condition — that is to say,
when we honour the mysteries of Jesus not only
by a few exterior actions or by a few interior acts
which do not last, but when we are in a permanent
state or condition which in itself is a continual
homage to some state or mystery of Jesus. For
instance, if you are in a state of poverty, interior
or exterior, and if you bear it with patience and
submission to the Will of God, you honour by
your condition the poverty of Jesus.

If you are reduced by some infirmity or sickness
to such a state of weakness and powerlessness that
you can scarcely move or wait on yourself, and if
you bear this condition with submission to the
good pleasure of God and in honour of the power-
lessness to which Jesus was reduced in His infancy,
you will in this way honour the powerlessness and
the weakness of the Infant Jesus.

If you are in a solitary and retired condition of
life, and if you accept your solitude for love of
God, you honour by your condition of life the
hidden and solitary life of Jesus.

If you are in a state of suffering, of pain and
trouble, whether mental or bodily, and you endure
it with humility and love in honour of the mental
and bodily sufferings of Jesus, you honour by your
condition the mystery of the Passion and sufferings

280 The Reign of Jesus

of Jesus. This method of honouring the mysteries
of Jesus is most excellent.

7. We should also honour them by a profound
and humble recognition of our unworthiness, in-
capacity, and powerlessness to render them the
honour they merit, acknowledging that there is
nothing in us worthy of giving them honour ; but
that, on the contrary, all in us which is of our-
selves is but an obstacle to the glory we ought
to render them, and that Jesus alone is worthy
of honouring His mysteries as they deserve to be
honoured. For this reason we should implore Him
to glorify Himself in us in every way pleasing
to Him.

THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS ! SEVEN OTHER METHODS
OF HONOURING THEM.

We have said that one of the ways of honouring
the mysteries of Jesus is to do so by our mental
acts. Here are seven such acts with which you
may occupy your mind on the subject of these
mysteries.

1. Adoration. — We should contemplate, adore,
glorify, and love Jesus for all He is in a general
way in the various circumstances and relations of
the mystery ; then, if we desire to go into details,
we can contemplate Him, adore Him, love Him,
and glorify Him in the body, or outward part, and
in the soul, or inward part, of the mystery — in its
effects, in its purposes, in the share in it given to
the blessed Virgin, to the Angels and Saints, and
to ourselves.

2. Admiration, Love. — We should rejoice to see
Jesus so great, so admirable, so filled with love,
with charity, with all kinds of virtues and of per-

What We should Do each Year 281

fections, in the mystery we are meditating. We
should rejoice also to see Him love and glorify His
Father after so high and worthy a fashion ; to see
Him so perfectly and so magnificently loved and
glorified by His Father, by His Holy Spirit,
by His blessed Mother, and by His Angels and
Saints.

3. Thanksgiving. — We should bless and thank
Jesus for all the love and glory which He has pro-
cured, and will eternally procure, to His Father
and to Himself, by each one of His mysteries ; and
also for all the graces, for all the favours He has
bestowed on us and all mankind by these mysteries.
But we should give Him even greater thanks for
the glory He has thus procured to His Father and
to Himself than for the graces bestowed on our-
selves, because the interests of God should be
dearer to us than our own. We may go so far
as to say, if we like, that it sufficeth to fulfil the
first of these duties ; for, if He has by means of
His mysteries acquired for us and bestowed on
us grace, it is in order to glorify His Father and
Himself in us. To thank Him for the glory ren-
dered to His Father is, therefore, to give Him
thanks for the grace bestowed on us, and to do so
in a way most holy, pure, and disinterested, which
causes us to forget ourselves in order to see naught
save God alone.

4. Act of Humility. — We should humble our-
selves at the feet of Jesus, and ask His forgiveness
for our negligence to honour Him in His mysteries ;
for the dishonour we have caused Him by our sins ;
for the hindrances we have occasioned, both in
ourselves and in others, to the glorifying of this
mystery and to the fulfilment of the purposes
which Jesus had in accomplishing it. Then let us

282 The Reign ot Jesus

beg Him to supply what is lacking in us, and to
render Himself a hundredfold all the honour which
we ought to have rendered Him. Let us also
beseech the eternal Father, the Holy Spirit, the
blessed Virgin, and all the Angels and Saints, to
make amends for our negligences, and to give in
our name to Jesus all the glory that we ought to
render Him in this mystery.

5. Oblation to Jesus. —We should refer to Jesus
all the effects of grace, of glory, and of holiness,
which He has ever effected by each mystery both
in Heaven and on earth. We should offer Him
all the glory, love, and praise which have been or
will ever be rendered to Him in each of His
mysteries by His eternal Father, by His Holy
Spirit, by His blessed Mother, by His Angels and
Saints — especially by those who belong to the
mystery— and by all creatures in Heaven, on earth,
or in hell. For we have already said, and we shall
show it even more clearly later on, that all the
mysteries of Jesus are honoured, even in hell, by
the power of the divine justice. We should,
therefore, associate ourselves with this universal
homage, and we should pray the eternal Father,
and all those above named to unite us to this
homage which they render and will render ever-
lastingly to the mysteries of Jesus.

6. Oblation of Ourselves. — We should give our-
selves to Jesus in order to honour this mystery in
every way pleasing to Him, and, having made use
for this purpose of all the power and capacity
which it shall please Him to confer on us, we
should beseech Him Himself to deign to make use
of the power and resources of His mind and of
His love to honour it in us. To this end we should
pray Him to destroy in us all which is opposed to

What We should Do each Year 283

the glory of this mystery ; to produce in us by its
means all the grace and all the effects which He
desires ; to rule us according to the spirit of this
mystery ; to imprint in us a reproduction of it ;
to give us a share in it ; and, finally, to accomplish
in us all the purposes He had in this mystery with
regard to us ; and we should then offer ourselves
to Him that we may do and suffer to this end all
it shall please Him to impose.

7. Prayers for Others. — We should pray Jesus to
imprint in the hearts of all Christians a fervent
zeal for the glory of these mysteries ; to destroy
in their souls all that may hinder this glory ; to
make His mysteries known and glorified through-
out the world so far as He desires it ; to fulfil and
accomplish them in His Church ; and to accom-
plish all the purposes which He desires to realize
by their means. We should again offer ourselves
to Him to do and to suffer to this end all it shall
please Him.

These are the various ways of honouring the
mysteries of Jesus, amongst which you can choose
those which suit you best, or you may make use,
sometimes of one, sometimes of another, as our
Lord shall give you grace and as the Holy Spirit
shall lead you.

But to make the practice of them easier to you
I will present to you the seven last rules in the
form of an elevation applied to the mystery of the
holy childhood, and you can yourself apply it to
each of the other mysteries in turn.

284 The Reign of Jesus

ELEVATION TO JESUS ON THE MYSTERY OF HIS
CHILDHOOD.

(This Elevation may be applied to all His other
Mysteries.)

1. 0 good Jesus, I adore, love, and glorify Thee
in all that Thou art, in all Thou didst, and dost
still, accomplish in the state of Thy holy child-
hood. I adore and I revere all the thoughts, all
the purposes, all the feelings, dispositions, and
interior occupations of Thy holy soul while in this
state with regard to Thy Father, to Thyself, to
Thy Holy Spirit, to Thy blessed Mother, to Thy
holy Angels and Saints, and especially to me.

2. I rejoice, O good Jesus, as I consider Thee in
Thy childhood, as I see how deeply Thou dost love
and glorify Thy Father, how greatly Thou art
loved and glorified by Him, and how Thou art
filled with most excellent virtues.

3. I give Thee infinite thanks for all the love,
for all the honour Thou hast procured to Thy
Father and to Thyself in this mystery.

4. I ask Thy forgiveness, O my Saviour, for all
my negligence in honouring this mystery, and for
having hindered the graces Thou didst purpose to
bestow on me by its means. Supply what is lack-
ing in me, I beseech Thee, and do Thou render
Thyself a hundredfold all the honour I ought to
have rendered Thee. O Father of Jesus, Holy
Spirit of Jesus, Mother of Jesus, Angels and Saints
of Jesus, glorify Jesus for me in this mystery.

5. O Jesus, I refer to Thee all the effects of grace
and of glory which Thou hast produced in Heaven
and on earth by Thy holy childhood, and I offer
Thee all the love and honour which have been, and

What We should Do each Year 285

ever will be, rendered Thee in this mystery in
Heaven and on earth by Thine eternal Father,
by Thy Holy Spirit, by Thy blessed Mother, by
all Thine Angels and Saints. I beseech them to
associate me with them in the praise which they
give and will give Thee eternally for this mystery.

6. O divine Child Jesus, I give myself to Thee,
to honour the mystery of Thy childhood in all
ways pleasing to Thee. Destroy in me all that is
opposed to the glory of this mystery. Implant in
me the simplicity, the humility, the gentleness,
the purity, the obedience, the innocence, and the
other virtues of Thy holy childhood, and place me
by this means in a state of holy and sacred child-
hood which shall be an imitation of Thine.

7. O most love-worthy Jesus, imprint in the
hearts of all Christians a very great devotion for
this divine mystery. Destroy in them all that is
opposed to it. Cause it to be glorified by all and
in the manner desired by Thee. Accomplish all
Thy purposes in this mystery. I give myself to
Thee, to do and suffer all it shall please Thee to
this end.

ANOTHER ELEVATION TO JESUS ON THE MYSTERY
OF HIS CHILDHOOD.

O Jesus, Thou art all love, at all moments, and
in all the states and mysteries of Thy life ; but
especially art Thou all love and gentleness at the
moment of Thy birth and during Thy holy child-
hood. How do I love Thee at that moment and
in that state ! May Heaven and earth love Thee
with me ! May the whole world be transformed
into love for its Creator and its God, Himself all
gentleness and love for the world.

286 The Reign of Jesus

0 most love-worthy Child, Thou art born by
love, in love, and for love. And Thou dost love
Thine eternal Father at the moment of Thy birth
more than all the Angels and mankind together
would be capable of loving Him throughout all
eternity. Thy Father, too, in that moment loved
Thee more than He ever loved or ever will love
all the Angels and all mankind together. O Jesus,
I offer Thee all this love which was given Thee at
Thy birth by Thy Heavenly Father ; I offer Thee
the love of Thy Holy Spirit, of Thy blessed Mother,
of S. Joseph, of S. Gabriel, and of all the Angels
and of all the Saints who had a special share in
this most love-worthy mystery.

0 Love of Jesus, who dost lead and rule Jesus
in all His states and in all His mysteries, but
especially in His state of childhood and in the
mystery of the Cross, and who in these two
mysteries dost triumphantly subject His Almighti-
ness to weakness, His wealth to poverty, His
supremacy to dependence, His eternal wisdom to
childlikeness, His joy and felicity to suffering, and
His life to death ; lead and rule me also. O Love,
rule my self-love, my self-will, and my passions ;
reduce me to a state of powerlessness, of indigence,
of dependence, of holy and divine childlikeness, of
death to the world and to myself, that so I may
adore and glorify the weakness, the dependence,
the childlikeness, and the death to which Thou
didst subject my Jesus in the mysteries of His
birth and of His Passion.

These Acts of Love on the birth and childhood
of Jesus will suffice to show you how to make
similar ones on the other states and mysteries of
Jesus.

What We should Do each Year 287

III. Exercise for the Anniversary of Our
Birth.

EXPLANATION.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, from the first moment of His
Incarnation, adored His Heavenly Father, and thence-
forward never ceased to prove His love for Him. We,
on the contrary, had to wait long before we were in a
state to know God and to adore and love Him. In order
to compensate for the sterility of this period of our
existence, the Blessed Jean Eudes invites us to offer the
dispositions and merits of the holy childhood of Jesus and
of Mary. This offering is most pleasing to God.

I cannot repeat too often, and you, on your side,
should never tire of hearing and considering it — so
important is this point— that Jesus Christ, Who is
our Head, and Whose members we are, having
passed through all the states of this mortal life as
we pass through them ; having performed nearly
all the actions which we perform — and not only
the exterior actions, but the interior acts — for
Himself and for us, Christian holiness and perfec-
tion consist in giving ourselves, in uniting our-
selves unceasingly, to Him as His members, in
continuing to do what He did, and in doing it as
He did it so far as we can by uniting ourselves to
His dispositions and intentions. Further, they
consist in giving our consent and adherence to all
He accomplished for us with regard to His Father,
and in ratifying it ; and in accomplishing all our
spiritual exercises, not for ourselves only, but, in
imitation of the Son of God, for others also,
especially for those with whom we are more closely
connected according to the Will of God.

In the same way, in due proportion we should

288 The Reign of Jesus

unite ourselves to the blessed Virgin, so as never
to separate the Mother from her Son.

You may make use of the following method :*

1. Begin by adoring Jesus in the bosom of His
Father, in the womb of the Virgin Mary, at the
moment of His birth.

2. In the place of the slumber of your childish
years offer to God the Father the adorations,
the praise, the oblations, the acts of love, all
the holy dispositions of the Child Jesus Offer
them for yourself, and offer them for all man-
kind.

3. Give thanks to God for having given you life,
and in order to pay the debt offer and consecrate
every instant of it to His glory.

4. As you entered this life stained with original
sin, and condemned to suffering and death, accept
all the crosses which the divine Providence sends
you.

ELEVATION TO JESUS.

0 Jesus, my august Head, Thou hast fulfilled
for me to Thy Father at the moment of Thy birth
here below all the obligations which I owed at
mine, Thou hast performed all the acts and exer-
cises which I ought to have performed. Blessed
be Thou for ever ! Oh, how heartily do I assent
and adhere to all that Thou then didst for me ! I
ratify and approve it with all the strength of my
will, and I would desire to sign it with the last
drop of my blood. I do likewise with regard to
all Thou hast done for me in all the other states
and acts of Thy life in order to supply what is
lacking in me.

* What follows is a summary.

What We should Do each Year 289

ELEVATION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN.

O Mother of Jesus, I hail thee and honour thee
as far as I am able in the moment of thy concep-
tion, during thy sojourn in the womb of thy
blessed mother, and in the moment of thy birth
into the world. I honour in thee all the sacred
dispositions of thy holy soul. I honour all the
love, all the adoration, praise, and blessing that
thou didst offer for me to God. In union with the
love, purity, and humility with which thou didst
adore, love, and glorify Him, and didst refer to
Him thy being and thy life, I adore, bless, and
love my God with thee with all my heart, with all
my strength, and I consecrate and offer to Him
for ever my life, my being, my whole self.

And, further, acknowledging thee, 0 holy
Virgin, to be the Mother of my God, and conse-
quently my sovereign Lady, I refer and give to
thee, after God, my whole being and my life ; and
I beseech thee most humbly to offer to God for me
all the love and glory which thou didst render
Him at thy birth in satisfaction for my negligences,
and to obtain for me, by thy prayers and merits,
that all the states, all the actions and sufferings of
my life may render an everlasting homage to the
states, actions, and sufferings of thy Son's life and
of thine.

THE ANGELS AND SAINTS WHOM WE SHOULD HAVE
HONOURED AT OUR BIRTH.

Having fulfilled our obligations to our Lord and
to His most holy Mother, we should salute and
honour the holy guardian Angel who was given us

19

290 The Reign of Jesus

by God at our baptism ; the guardian Angels of our
parents, of the parish and diocese in which we
were born ; the order of Angels with which God
purposes to associate us in Heaven ; as also the
Saint of the day, place and country in which we
were born. We should thank them for the favours
which we have received from them. We should
offer ourselves to them in order to honour them
during our whole life in the manner God desires of
us. We should also pray them to offer us to our
Lord ; to make use of us in order to glorify Him ;
to do for us with regard to our Lord what we
ought to have done at our birth ; and to obtain
from Him by their prayers fresh grace and strength
to begin a new life wholly consecrated to the glory
of His.

IV. Exercise for the Anniversary of Our
baptism.

EXPLANATION.

On the anniversary of one's Baptism, of one's ordination
as priest, or of one's religious profession, it is customary
to give thanks to God and to renew one's vows.

In certain religious Communities the renewal of the
vows is performed with solemnity, and is preceded by
several days of recollection.

According to the testimony of S. Magdalen di Pazzi,
this pious practice is of great importance :

1. For the Glory of God. — " Each time," she says, " that
one renews the promises one has made to God the union
between the creature and the Creator is also renewed.
This renewal is a cause of joy to the Blessed Trinity.
This act is no less pleasing to Mary than if she herself
were to renew her vow of virginity. The Angels are
glorified thereby, for they see us thus responding to the
inspirations which have come to us by their ministry.
The Saints rejoice thereat because they see others reso-
lutely following in their steps."

What We should Do each Year 291

2. For the Progress of the Soul. — " As for the soul, she
herself draws from this practice immense advantage.
Grace is showered on her in greater abundance ; the pro-
mises she has made acquire new strength ; she tastes a
peace hitherto unknown ; finally, her union with God
becomes closer, and produces fruit which shows itself in
her words and in her deeds."*

The Blessed Jean Eudes desired to aid us in obtaining
all these graces and in procuring the glory of God. For
this purpose he has composed an admirable exercise for
the anniversary of our Baptism. Let us, therefore,
renew, with all our heart the covenant then made with
the three divine Persons.

THE GREATNESS AND THE GRACE OF BAPTISM.

By holy Baptism we began to live the true life
— the life which we received from Jesus Christ —
and this divine Sacrament is the source of our
happiness. It is certain that, had we then pos-
sessed the use of our reason, we ought to have
rendered to God especial thanks for a favour so
great. But we were not capable of doing so, and
in order to supply this defect it is well each year
to pass the anniversary of our Baptism, or some
other day in its stead, in intercourse with God for
the purpose of thanking Him for so great a benefit.

The author of the sacrament of Baptism is our
Lord Jesus Christ. It is He Who is the source of
the grace contained in this Sacrament ; it is He
Who hath acquired and merited it for us by His
Incarnation, by His Baptism in the waters of
Jordan, by His Passion, and by His death ; it is
He Who hath applied it to us by the virtue of His
Resurrection, and all this because of the infinite
love He bears us.

* "Life of S. Magdalen di Pazzi " — "Vie de Ste
Madeleine de Pazzi," p. 118.

292 The Reign of Jesus

I. THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS FIGURED IN HOLY
BAPTISM.

As all things which are outside of God have
their model and prototype in Him, so our Baptism
has as prototype and model four great mysteries
of the life of Jesus :

1. The mystery of the eternal birth of the Son
of God in the bosom of His Father.

2. The mystery of His birth in time of the
Virgin Mary.

3. The mystery of His death and burial.

4. The mystery of His Resurrection.

1. The mystery of His eternal birth, because, as
in His eternal generation, His Father communi-
cates to Him His being, His life, and all His divine
perfections — a communication which makes Him
Son of God and the perfect Image of His Father —
so by holy Baptism He bestows on us the heavenly
and divine being and life which He received from
His Father, He imprints in us a living image of
Himself, and makes us children of that same
Father Whose Son He is.

2. The mystery of His birth in time. As at the
moment of His Incarnation He took upon Himself
our nature, clothed Himself with it, and filled it
with Himself, so in the sacrament of Baptism He
united Himself to us and incorporated us into Him-
self. He formed Himself and, as it were, became
Incarnate in us, clothed and filled us with Himself,
according to the words of His Apostle : " Ye who
are baptized in Jesus Christ have put on Jesus
Christ " (Gal. iii. 27).

3. The mystery of His death and of His burial,
for S. Paul declares : " We who are baptized into

What We should Do each Year 293

Jesus Christ are baptized into His death " (Rom.
vi. 3) ; and that " We are buried with Him by bap-
tism into death " (Rom. vi. 4). The same Apostle
also affirms in another place : "Ye are dead,
and your life is hid with Christ in God " (Col. iii. 3)
— that is to say, ye have by Baptism entered a
state which obliges you to be dead to yourselves
and to the world, and to live henceforth with Jesus
Christ a holy and divine life, hidden, buried, and
absorbed in God.

4. The mystery of His Resurrection, because, as
the Son of God by His Resurrection entered upon
a new life, entirely independent of earthly con-
ditions, and wholly heavenly and spiritual, so the
great Apostle teaches us that ' ' We are buried with
Jesus Christ by baptism in order that, as after
death He rose again and entered on a new life, so
we, being baptized, should lead a new life "
(Rom. vi. 4).

2. THE ACTION OF JESUS IN HOLY BAPTISM.

All the holy Fathers teach us that it is our
Lord Jesus Christ Who Himself confers all the
Sacraments by the virtue of His Holy Spirit, and
by the ministry of the priest who represents Him,
and acts in His Name and by His authority. It
is He Who consecrates at Mass, it is He Who gives
absolution in the sacrament of Penance ; so also
it is He Who baptizes and Who hath inspired His
Church to institute the ceremonies which precede
and follow the actual Baptism — ceremonies so full
of mystery and significance.

294 The Reign of Jesus

3. BAPTISM CONFERRED IN THE NAME OF THE
MOST BLESSED TRINITY, AND OF THE DUTY
WE OWE THE BLESSED TRINITY FOR THIS
REASON.

It is by our Lord Jesus Christ that we are
baptized, as has been said, but it is in the Name
and by the virtue of the ever-blessed Trinity ; for
the three divine Persons are present in Holy
Baptism in a most especial manner. The Father
is present engendering His Son in us, and begetting
us in His Son — that is to say, giving a new being
and a new life to His Son in us, and giving us a
new being and a new life in His Son. The Son is
present, being born and taking life in our souls,
and communicating to us His divine Sonship, thus
making us sons of God, as He is Son of God. The
Holy Spirit is there, forming Jesus in our souls as
He formed Him in the womb of the Virgin. The
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are there, setting us
apart, taking possession of us, and consecrating
us to Themselves in a very special way, imprinting
in us Their divine character and image, and estab-
lishing in us Their dwelling, Their glory, Their
reign, Their life, as in Their living temple, Their
sacred tabernacle, Their Heaven. And afterwards,
if our sins did not hinder us, these three eternal
Persons would always remain in us in an ineffable
manner. They would glorify Themselves in us,
They would reign in us perfectly, and They would
live in us with a life most holy and most divine.
In the same way, too, we belong to God as beings
wholly consecrated to Him, and who, in conse-
quence, should be employed to no other use than
that of His glory and service.

What We should Do each Year 295

4. THE ALLIANCE BETWEEN GOD AND MAN
CONTRACTED BY HOLY BAPTISM.

You who are baptized, you should know that
by your Baptism you have made a contract of the
highest importance.

A public and solemn contract, to which Heaven
and earth are witness.

A contract written, not by the hand of man,
but by the hand of Angels, with the precious Blood
of Jesus Christ in the eternal book of the divine
mercy.

A contract concerned with an everlasting empire
of untold wealth, of glory, of grandeur, and of
incomprehensible felicity.

A deed of gift by which you gave yourself to
God, and by which God gave Himself to you.

A deed of purchase by which our Lord Jesus
Christ bought you with His Blood, and delivered
you out of the power of Satan, that He might give
you into the care of His Heavenly Father.

A deed of association and of alliance, the highest,
closest, and most advantageous possible.

An alliance not only of friend with friend, of
brother with brother, of spouse with spouse, but
of a member with its head — the closest of all
alliances.

An alliance and a union so excellent that the
union of the branches with the vine, of the graft
with the tree, of the members of the human body
with the head, are but shadows and figures of it.

An alliance which is, as it were, the continua-
tion, the extension, and the copy of the ineffable
union of the sacred humanity of the Saviour with
His adorable Person.

296 The Reign of Jesus

An alliance cemented by the precious Blood of
Jesus Christ.

An alliance of which the Holy Spirit, Who is the
unity of the Father and the Son, is the divine
bond.

An alliance so admirable that the Son of God
compares it to the union which exists between
Him and His Father : "I in them, and Thou in
Me, that they may be perfected in one " (S. John
xvii. 23).

O incomparable union ! O ineffable companion-
ship ! 0 admirable alliance ! 0 sublime grandeur
of the Christian religion ! O sanctity, 0 indescrib-
able dignity of Holy Baptism ! O holy and sacred
contract of God with man and of man with God !
O goodness of God passing all understanding ! 0
happiness of man beyond human power to conceive !

5. OBLIGATIONS OF THE CONTRACT.

I. On God's Side. — God, through an excess of
goodness, has been pleased to impose on Himself
certain obligations with regard to us.

The Eternal Father, by receiving you as one of
His children, as a member of Jesus Christ His Son,
engages to love you with the same love wherewith
He loves His Son, because you are one with Him
as the member is one with its head.

And here are the stupendous results of this love :

(1) He has infused His grace into your soul —
that grace whose least infusion is worth more than
all earthly empires.

(2) He has planted in your soul the virtues of
faith, hope, and charity — the infused virtues, the
gifts of the Holy Spirit.

(3) He has given Himself to you with His Son,

What We should Do each Year 297

and His Holy Spirit, and has come with Them to
take up His abode in your soul.

(4) Since that moment His eyes are unceasingly
fixed on you, His mind thinks of you, His heart
loves you, His power, His wisdom, His goodness,
are ceaselessly employed in protecting you, in
guiding you, in overwhelming you with benefits.

(5) Lastly, He promises, if you are faithful to
the conditions of the contract, that you shall be
inheritor of Heaven, co-inheritor with His own Son.

The Son engages, when He makes with you this
alliance :

(1) To treat you as bone of His Bone, flesh of
His Flesh, and spirit of His Spirit.

(2) To love you as He loves Himself.

(3) To give you His Eternal Father to be your
Father.

(4) To give you His Spirit and His divine Heart
to be the spirit of your spirit and the heart of your
heart.

(5) To give you His Mother, the Virgin Mary,
to be your Mother.

(6) To give you His Church, which is, as it were,
your second mother.

(7) To give you His Body and Blood in the Holy
Eucharist, to be the food of your soul.

(8) To give you His own kingdom, and to make
you sit with Him on His throne.

2. Obligations on Our Side. — When you entered
into an alliance with God by holy Baptism you
offered, gave, and consecrated yourself to His
divine Majesty, and you engaged yourself to
perform two great duties, for —

(1) You promised by the mouth of your god-
father and godmother to renounce Satan, his
pomps and his works.

298 The Reign of Jesus

(2) You promised to cleave to Jesus Christ by
faith, hope, and charity — that is to say, to follow
Jesus Christ by faith in His words and doctrine ;
by hope in His promises ; by love in His command-
ments, His maxims, His virtues, and His life.

And this truth draws from S. Gregory of Nyssa
this beautiful saying : " Chris tianismus est con-
junctio cum Christo et professio vitae Christi " — •
To be a Christian is to be one with Jesus Christ,
and consequently to live the life of Jesus Christ.*

ELEVATION TO JESUS FOR RENEWING THE
PROFESSION WHICH WE MADE AT OUR BAPTISM.

O Jesus, my Lord and my God, I adore Thee as
my Head, Whom I am to follow and imitate in all
things, according to the public and solemn pro-
fession which I made at my Baptism ; for I did
then promise and profess in presence of Heaven
and earth, by the mouth of my godfather and god-
mother, to renounce Satan, his works and his
pomps — that is to say, sin and the world — to
cleave unto Thee as my Head, to give and con-
secrate myself wholly to Thee, and to dwell in
Thee for ever. What a solemn promise and pro-
fession, obliging me, as it does, to great perfection
and holiness ; for to profess to dwell in Thee and
to cleave to Thee as my Head is to profess to be
one with Thee as members are one with their head ;
it is to profess to have but one life, one mind, one
heart, one soul, one will, with Thee.

It is, therefore, to make profession, not only of

poverty, or of chastity, or of obedience, but of

Thee— that is to say, of Thy life, of Thy mind, of

Thy humility, of thy charity, of Thy purity, of

* " Contract," tome ii.

What We should Do each Year 299

Thy poverty, of Thy obedience, and of all Thy
virtues. In a word, it is to make the same pro-
fession as Thou didst make in presence of Thy
Father at the moment of Thine Incarnation, and
which Thou didst so perfectly accomplish through-
out Thy life — that is to say, the profession never
to do Thine own will, but to find Thy content in
doing the Will of God ; to be for love of God in a
state of perpetual servitude with regard to God
and man ; and to be a host and victim continually
sacrificed to the sole glory of God.

That is the vow and profession which I made at
my Baptism, 0 Jesus, my Lord. Oh, what a holy
and divine profession ! Oh, how far removed is
my life from this holiness and perfection ! How
often have I failed, and in how many ways, in
this holy profession ! Forgive me, my Saviour —
forgive me, I beseech Thee ! 0 my divine Repara-
tion, atone, I beseech Thee, for my negligences, and
in satisfaction for them offer to Thy Father all the
honour Thou hast rendered Him throughout Thy
life by the perfect accomplishment of the profes-
sion Thou didst make at the moment of Thine
Incarnation !

0 my Jesus, in honour of and in union with the
deep love and all the other holy dispositions with
which Thou didst make this same profession, I
purpose to do now, myself, that which I did by
proxy at my Baptism — I purpose to renew the
profession I then made by the mouth of my god-
father and godmother. To this end, by the virtue
and power of Thy Spirit and of Thy love, I re-
nounce for ever Satan, sin, the world, and myself.
I give myself to Thee, O Jesus, that I may cleave
to Thee ; that I may abide in Thee ; that I may
be one with Thee in heart, in mind, in life. I give

3oo The Reign of Jesus

myself to Thee in order to do, never mine own
will, but Thine only. I give, dedicate, and con-
secrate myself to Thee in order to serve Thee for
ever, and to serve my neighbour for love of Thee.
Further, I dedicate and offer myself in sacrifice to
Thee as host and victim, ready to be immolated
for Thy glory in every way that shall be pleasing
to Thee. 0 good Jesus, give me grace, I beseech
Thee, by Thy great mercy, to fulfil this holy pro-
fession ; but do Thou fulfil it in me and for me —
or, rather, for Thyself and for Thy sole content —
according to the measure of perfection Thou dost
desire ; for I give myself to Thee to do and suffer
to this intention all it shall please Thee to impose.

THANKSGIVING FOR HOLY BAPTISM.

0 Jesus, I adore Thee as the author and insti-
tutor of the sacrament of Baptism, and because
Thou hast acquired and merited by Thine Incarna-
tion, by Thy Baptism in the river Jordan, and by
Thy holy death, the grace which is contained in
this sacrament.

1 adore the deep love which caused Thee to
merit and to institute this sacrament.

I adore all Thy purposes in instituting it, both
with regard to Thy Church in general and to me
in particular.

I thank Thee a thousand times for all the glory
Thou hast rendered to Thyself, and for the grace
Thou hast bestowed on Thy whole Church, and
especially on me, by this sacrament.

I offer and refer to Thee all the glory and all the
effects of grace which Thou hast produced in Thy
Church by this means.

I ask Thy forgiveness for having so little profited

What We should Do each Year 301

by the grace Thou didst give me in holy Baptism ;
for having rendered it vain and useless to me by
my sluggishness and unfaithfulness in Thy service ;
for having even destroyed it in my soul by my
sins.

I give myself to Thee, 0 good Jesus. Renew
and revive in me this grace, and fulfil in me, by
Thy great mercy, all the purposes which Thou
didst deign to have touching my soul in the divine
sacrament of Baptism.

0 Jesus, I adore Thee in the mysteries of Thine
Incarnation, of Thy Passion, and of Thy Death, as
meriting thus the grace contained in the sacrament
of Baptism ; but especially I adore Thee in the
mystery of Thy Baptism in the waters of the
Jordan. I adore all the dispositions of Thy holy
soul in this mystery, and all Thy purposes touch-
ing my soul. Oh, what a difference, Lord, be-
tween Thy Baptism and ours ! For in Thy
Baptism Thou dost take on Thee our sins in order
to pay the penalty for them before Thy Father
in the desert and on the Cross ; and in our Baptism
Thou dost free us from the burden of these sins,
washing them away in Thy precious Blood.
Blessed be Thou for ever ! 0 good Jesus, I give
myself wholly to Thee. Fulfil, I beseech Thee,
the purposes Thou didst deign to form with regard
to me in Thy holy Baptism — that is to say, deliver
me wholly from my sins, wash me in Thy precious
Blood, baptize me with that baptism of the Holy
Spirit and of fire with which Thy blessed precursor
assured us that Thou didst baptize — that is to say,
consume all my sins in the flame of Thy holy love
by the might of Thy Holy Spirit.

302 The Reign of Jesus

ELEVATION TO JESUS FOR THE RENEWAL OF THE
THREE VOWS OF RELIGION.

0 Jesus, my Lord, I adore Thee, I love Thee,
and I glorify Thee in Thy holy poverty, in Thy
divine purity, and in Thy most perfect obedience.

1 adore and glorify Thee in all Thy purposes
with regard to all those souls who have made, or
who will make, the vow of poverty, chastity, and
obedience, but especially to mine.

I give Thee thanks, O good Jesus, for all the
glory Thou hast rendered to Thy Father and to
Thyself by Thy poverty, Thy chastity, and Thine
obedience, and by the poverty, chastity, and
obedience of Thy Mother and of all Religious.

I ask Thy forgiveness for all my offences against
these holy vows, and in reparation for them I offer
Thee all the honour which Thou didst render to
Thyself by Thy poverty, Thy chastity, and Thine
obedience, and by the poverty, chastity, and
obedience of Thy blessed Mother and of all
Religious. I most humbly beseech Thee to atone
for my negligence, and to render to Thyself that
honour which I ought to have rendered Thee by
the observance of my threefold vow. To this end
I offer myself to Thee to do and suffer all it shall
please Thee to impose.

0 my Jesus, I offer to Thee once more these
three vows of mine, of poverty, of chastity, and
of obedience ; and I protest, in presence of Heaven
and earth, that I purpose to observe them per-
fectly to my last breath in honour of the divine
poverty, chastity, and obedience of Thee and of
Thy blessed Mother.

1 give myself to Thee, 0 Jesus ! Destroy in me,

What We should Do each Year 303

I beseech Thee, all that is opposed to these three
virtues, and give me grace to observe this three-
fold vow with all the perfection Thou dost require
of me.

0 Mother of Jesus, Angels and Saints of Jesus,
beseech Him to destroy in me all that is dis-
pleasing to Him, and to shape in me such a per-
fect image of His poverty, chastity, and obedience
as may be a continual imitation and adoration of
the poor, chaste, and obedient life He led on
earth.

V. The Annual Retreat.

EXPLANATION.

The exigences of our position are often an invincible
obstacle to going into Retreat. It is necessary, there-
fore, to know how to isolate oneself in one's own home,
and, unknown to one's family, to make, under the eye of
God, a spiritual retreat. In order that it may be profitable,
let us reflect on the following rules :

I. The essential work of a Retreat consists —

1. In an examination of the dispositions of the soul,
and especially of its fundamental disposition. Have I the
firm will to continue the life of Jesus Christ ? Is this
will constant or intermittent ? Is it efficacious ? What
influence does it exercise on my thoughts, on my affec-
tions, on my actions, on my exercises of religion, on
my relations with God, with our Lord, with the blessed
Virgin, with my neighbour ? . . .

2. In the reparation for our sins and negligences — by
contrition, by a humble, sincere, and complete avowal ;
by penance ; by the Way of the Cross ; by a Communion
of reparation ; by humbling oneself before our Lord,
etc. . . .

3. In the renewal of the dispositions of the soul,
especially the disposition to continue the life of Jesus
Christ in the smallest details, especially those in which
we have been unfaithful in the past.

II. Rules for a Retreat. — We should organize our day
so as to have in the morning : (i) An hour's prayer and

304 The Reign of Jesus

meditation ; (2) an hour's reading ; (3) the hearing of
Mass. In the afternoon : (1) An hour's prayer and medi-
tation ; (2) the Rosary and the visit to the Blessed
Sacrament ; (3) an hour's reading — examination of the
dispositions of the soul when it appears most convenient.

III. Books to be read during a Retreat. — The books one
should always have at hand are : (1) The Holy Gospel ;
(2) the "Imitation of Jesus Christ"; (3) the "Intro-
duction to the Devout Life " of S. Francis de Sales
(part v.) ; (4) the Life of some Saint.

Read especially the sixth and seventh chapters of
S. Matthew, and from the eleventh to the seventeenth
chapters of S. John.

Those who follow a Retreat preached in their parish
church can make use of those parts of this programme
which they judge most useful.

THE RETREAT : THE DISPOSITIONS NECESSARY
FOR MAKING A GOOD RETREAT.

It is a most profitable and most important thing, and
one whose utility cannot be perfectly realized save by
those who experience it, to devote a short time every year
to the affairs of God and to the performing of one's religious
exercises with more care than usual. As people living
in the world, besides the ordinary refreshment they bestow
daily on their bodies, sometimes indulge in exceptional
festivities, so it is most profitable for all Christians who
make profession of holy living to have, in addition to
their ordinary devotional exercises, exceptional spiritual
festivities and times of rejoicing, by giving themselves
up entirely to the things of God and spending their time
in loving and glorifying Him with more warmth and
fervour than usual. For herein truly consists perfect
joy and true delight : in holding intercourse and in con-
versing with God by holy prayer and meditation.

It is to this that S. Paul exhorts not only Religious, but
also all Christians, and even married people, counselling
them to quit from time to time the occupations and
obligations of their position, in order to devote themselves
to prayer and meditation.

This has been practised from all time in the Church of
God ; for we read of many Saints and Prelates of the
Church, that, freeing themselves from the shackles of

What We should Do each Year 305

their ordinary occupations and of their domestic affairs,
they frequently withdrew for awhile into some solitary
place, in order to devote themselves wholly to contem-
plating, loving, and glorifying God.

This is what I call the Annual Retreat, because it is
practised each year — once at least — in all communities
in which reign piety and the love of God. It is also
practised by many people living in the world, who set
apart each year eight or ten days, during which they bid
farewell entirely to the care about earthly things, and
withdraw into some holy house, in order to devote
themselves wholly to exercises of religion and of the
divine love.

If your position or your too numerous occupations do
not permit of your doing likewise, or of your devoting so
long a time, endeavour at least to set apart a short time,
in order to devote yourself to the exercises of prayer and
of the love of God with more care and fervour than usual ,
following the method indicated by him who has the
direction of your soul.

This Retreat should be made with three principal
objects :

1. In order to continue and to honour the various
retreats of Jesus, such as the retreat He made from all
eternity in the bosom of His Father ; that which He made
in the womb of His Mother during nine months ; in the
stable at Bethlehem the space of forty days ; in Egypt
during seven years ; at Nazareth all the time of His
hidden life, which lasted to the age of thirty ; in the
desert during forty days ; in Heaven in the glory of the
Father since His Ascension ; and in the Blessed Sacra-
ment, where He is, as it were, in retreat and in a state of
hidden life, ever since He instituted it, and where He
will remain to the end of time ; to honour also the various
retreats of the blessed Virgin and the share she had in
those of her Son. Thus the first object, the first and chief
intention of the Retreat should be to love and glorify
Jesus and His most holy Mother, and to unite and give
ourselves ever more and more to the Son and to the
Mother.

2. In order to make reparation during the time of the
Retreat for our negligences and for the offences which we
have committed against the love and the glory of Jesus
and of Mary.

3. In order to form new resolutions, to obtain fresh

30

306 The Reign of Jesus

strength, to prepare ourselves to receive a renewal of
grace so that we may walk with more courage in the
paths of the divine love, and overcome all the obstacles
which we may encounter.

Finally, we should look upon the Retreat as a paradise
and the period of the Retreat as a foretaste of eternity,
and endeavour to do during this time what we shall do
throughout eternity, thus beginning here below the
life and the exercises which will be ours in Heaven —
that is to say, the contemplating, loving, and glorifying
God.

We should also consider and employ the time of the
Retreat as if it were all that remained to us of time
in which to love and glorify Jesus, and to make reparation
for all the offences we have committed in our whole
life.

Above all, we should protest to our Lord that we desire
to perform these holy exercises, in no wise for our own
consolation or for our own interest, or to earn merit for
ourselves, but solely for His contentment and for His
greater glory.

EXAMINAHON OF CONSCIENCE.*

I. Examination of Conscience on the Subject of
Prayer.

Consider what ought to be our dispositions, both inward
and outward, in presenting ourselves before our Creator,
our King, the Holy of Holies, the Sovereign Judge.
Represent to yourself how the Son of God prayed to His
Father, how the Blessed Virgin and the Saints prayed.
Examine yourself as to whether your preparation for
prayer has been sufficient ; whether you have spent in
prayer a suitable length of time ; whether you have
neglected the prayers of obligation ; whether you have
chosen the most fitting time and place for prayer ;
whether you have laid yourself open to wandering
thoughts by looking about you ; whether you have prayed
with due outward respect and inward attention ; whether
so many prayers have profited to your spiritual progress.

* Summary of the examination of conscience of the
" Memorial," ("CEuvres Completes," iii.).

What We should Do each Year 307

II. Examination of Conscience on the Sacrament of
Penance.

Consider the infinite goodness of our Lord Jesus Christ
manifested by His instituting in His Church the sacrament
of Penance, by which —

1. He forgives us our sins, however great, however
numerous they may be.

2. He purifies us by the virtue of His precious Blood.

3. He re-establishes or increases grace in our soul.
Remember that the dispositions we ought to bring to

the reception of this Sacrament are — ■

1. To acknowledge that, unaided, we cannot obtain
these dispositions, and that we must therefore ask God
for them.

2. To examine ourselves diligently.

3. To feel a real contrition for our sins, together with
a firm purpose of amendment.

4. To confess them entirely, clearly, and sincerely.

5. To submit ourselves absolutely to the directions of
our Confessor.

6. To accomplish faithfully our Penance

7. To take God's side against ourselves, to clothe our-
selves with His justice, in order to punish and destroy
in ourselves His enemy, sin.

III. Examination of Conscience on the Subject of
Mass.

Consider the infinite dignity of Holy Mass. There is
nothing grander in Heaven or earth. It is a sacrifice in
which the victim is a God, which is offered to a God, and
by a God. It is the same sacrifice as that of Calvary.
In this sacrifice our Lord becomes present amongst us,
immolates Himself for us, gives Himself to us.

Examine yourself as to the faults committed at Mass :
whether you have behaved devoutly, both outwardly and
inwardly ; whether you have prepared yourself fittingly
for Communion, and duly made your thanksgiving after-
wards ; what benefit you have obtained from so many
Masses, so many Communions. Have they led to the
correcting of your faults, to your advance in virtue ?

308 The Reign of Jesus

IV. Examination of Conscience on the Subject of
Humility.
Consider —

1. That humility consists in having a very mean
estimate of oneself ; in despising, loathing, and avoiding
esteem, honour, glory, and the praise of men ; in loving
abjection, contempt, and ignominy.

2. That without humility it is impossible to please God
or to save one's soul. " Nisi emciamini si cut parvuli, non
intrabitis in regnum ccelorum " — " Except ye become
as little children, ye shall in no wise enter the kingdom
of Heaven " (S. Matt, xviii. 3).

3. That humility is the measure of the holiness of souls
on earth and of their glory in Heaven.

4. That if humility is so necessary, we ought to have a
great horror of vanity.

5. That for a single sin of pride millions of Angels were
cast down into hell.

6. That the Son of God and His Mother also have left
us unparalleled examples of humility.

Examine yourself carefully touching your offences
against humility in thought, word, and action.

See what feelings you have about yourself :

Whether you take pleasures in the esteem and praise
of men.

Whether you avoid the things which humiliate you.

Whether you talk about yourself to your own ad-
vantage.

Whether you accept correction and warning in a spirit
of humility.

Whether you contest with your neighbour from love
of your own opinion.

Whether you submit your mind and will to the orders
of your superiors.

Whether you are not actuated by love of vain-glory.

Whether you do not prefer yourself to others.

Whether you have not an undue desire of position and
dignity.

Whether you have not a secret confidence in your intelli-
gence, in your knowledge, in your judgment, in your
experience, in your capacity, in your good resolutions, etc.

Ask God's forgiveness for all your sins against humility.
Pray our Lord to atone for them, to give you the means

What We should Do each Year 309

of acquiring true humility, to impress on your mind three
convictions : (i) That you are nothing, that you possess
nothing, that you can do nothing ; (2) that you are but
corruption, and that you bear in you the germ of all sins ;
(3) that you merit the wrath of God and eternal dam-
nation.

Take the resolution —

1 . Never to accept any honour, any praise, but to refer
all to God.

2. Always to humble yourself at the beginning and
end of your actions.

3. To reject promptly all thoughts of vanity and
feelings of self-complacency.

4. To turn your eyes from the faults of others in order
to fix them on your own.

5. To humble yourself when you hear the faults of
others spoken of, recognizing that if God did not preserve
you from it, you would commit even worse.

6. To take, against yourself, the side of those who have
reason to complain of you.

7. Not to give yourself airs of being superior or more
learned or better informed than others.

8. To accept and lovingly to embrace the humiliation
which is the consequence of your sins.

9. To accept humiliations, shame, contradiction, and
affliction, not only as trials, but as a just chastisement.

V. Examination of Conscience touching Charity.

Charity is the queen and mother of all the virtues ; it
is their source and end, their soul and their life.

It is charity which caused the Son of God to come down
from the bosom of His Father into the womb of the Virgin
Mary ; which caused Him to live on earth a laborious
and suffering life ; which caused Him to die on the Cross ;
which causes Him to give Himself to us in the Blessed
Sacrament.

Charity is the subject of the principal clause of His
Will : " This is My commandment, that ye love one
another."

The flower and perfection of charity are meekness and
kindliness : " Learn of Me that am meek and lowly of
heart."

Consider that the noblest work of charity is to labour

3 1 o The Reign of Jesus

for the salvation of souls — a work which excels all others,
the most divine of all divine works : " Omnium divinorum
divinissimum " (S. Denis).

Examine yourself as to the sins you have committed
by thought, word, act, and omission against the charity
you owe to your neighbour, especially to those with
whom you live ; against gentleness and kindliness in your
relations with others ; against zeal for the salvation of
souls.

VI. Examination of Conscience touching the
Other Virtues.

i. Submission to the Will of God. — Examine yourself
whether you have been lacking in submission to the Will
of God as manifested — (i) in the events which happen ;
(2) in the commandments of God ; (3) in the command-
ments of the Church ; (4) in the duties of your position ;
(5) in the orders of your Superiors.

2. Simplicity. — Do you make use of finesse and dupli-
city ? Is your way of speaking simple, sincere, candid,
without exaggeration or superabundance of words ?
Have you any peculiarity likely to wound the feelings of
others ?

3. Modesty. — Do you behave modestly in church, in
your room, in the street, in your relations with others ?
Do you permit yourself any excess in drinking, in eating,
any superfluity in dress, in furniture ?

VII. Examination of Conscience on the Manner of

PERFORMING OUR ACTIONS.

Consider that it is of great importance to perform all
our actions well, not only the great, but also the small,
and this for the following reasons :

1. We are children of God, created in His image, and
consequently obliged to imitate Him. " Be ye also per-
fect, as your Father in Heaven is perfect " (S. Matt. v.).

2. Our Lord Jesus Christ, our divine Pattern, rendered
i nfinite glory to His Father by all His actions, even by the
most insignificant, because He performed them all with
an equal love and with dispositions equally holy.

3. God cares no less for the smallest things which con-
cern us than for the most important. Therefore we should

What We should Do each Year 311

perform our most insignificant actions with deep love, a
nigh sense of their importance, and the greatest possible
perfection.

4. He who performs his actions carelessly and in-
differently robs God of the glory due to Him, and deprives
himself of much grace and blessing in time and in eternity.

Examine yourself on the sins committed by your
actions and in the manner of performing them :

1. By the actions concerning the service of God.

2. By those which concern your neighbour.

3. By those which concern the duties of your position -
and your profession.

Ask forgiveness, and offer in reparation the glory
rendered to God by the actions of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Make a resolution —

1. To fight against all indolence, indifference, evil in-
tention, and negligence.

2. To have always an honest and straightforward inten-
tion of promoting the greater glory of God.

3. To do each thing in the order, in the place, at the
time which is fitting.

4. To perform your smallest action with the greatest
possible perfection.

5. To perform each action with suitable dispositions :
acts of humility, humbly ; acts of obedience, promptly,
joyfully, with submission of mind and will ; acts of
penance with a deep hatred of sin ; acts of charity with
all your heart ; acts of religion, devoutly.

6. To renounce yourself at the beginning of each action,
and to give yourself to our Lord Jesus Christ, in order
to do it according to His Will and with His dispositions.

7. To think while you are performing the action of
Him and of the dispositions with which He did it, and is
still doing it with you.

8. To do and Suffer for God all that you do and suffer :
" Corde magno et animo volenti " — " Heartily and with
a willing mind " (2 Mace. i. 3). — that is to say, lovingly
and joyfully.

9. At the end of each action to renounce all self-
complacency, and to offer all to the glory of God, the only
source of all good.

3 1 2 The Reign of Jesus

RESOLUTIONS.

Paradise on Earth, or the Supreme Perfection and
Felicity of the Christian Life.

Happy are they who pursue with such generous ardour
the heavenly path, that they attain to the state of perfec-
tion shown in the following twelve articles which are, as
it were, twelve degrees of perfection of Christian holiness.
Yea, blessed is the man who can declare with lips and
heart :

I

By the mercy of God I am at this moment in such a
state that my conscience can reproach me with no sin
nor any attachment for sin. On the contrary, I hold sin
in such horror that there is nothing I loathe so much as
this infernal monster, and that, with the grace of my
Saviour, I would rather suffer all the tortures of earth
and of hell than admit it into my soul.

IL

I renounce entirely and for ever all hatred and aversion
for all persons whatsoever. I protest that 1 purpose to
suffer nothing in my heart, on my lips, or in my actions,
which is opposed to the charity I owe my neighbour,
but that I am ready to shed my blood and give my life
for all my brethren, even for my direst enemy.

III.
I declare that I would rather lose the wealth of all the
world, did 1 possess it, than to take or to keep back
an obolus belonging to another. I declare also that I
purpose to make use of that wealth which the divine
Providence hath bestowed on me, for my own needs, for
the service of God, and for the assistance of the poor,
in whom henceforth I desire to see Jesus Christ, serving and
loving Him in them.

IV.

I love all that God hath made, but I love nothing save
in God and for God. My mind is detached from all
created things ; my heart holds naught indispensable

What We should Do each Year 313

to her happiness ; I bid farewell to all, that I may belong
wholly to Him Who is All, and Who is All to me. O my
All, it is Thou Who hast freed me, and burst my bonds !
I will offer Thee for ever a sacrifice of praise and love.

V.

By the grace of my Saviour I have learnt to humble
myself in all things and in all places ; to submit, and to
abase myself to all mankind ; to acknowledge that I am
indeed worthy of all contempt, affliction, and chastise-
ment ; and that when I have done, with the help of God,
all I am capable of doing, I am still an unprofitable
servant.

VI.

I profess henceforward, in imitation of my Jesus, to
hold in abhorrence the honours, the pleasures, the riches,
and the vanities of the world ; to find my glory in
ignominy, my content in suffering, and my wealth in
poverty. I profess that I embrace with all my heart,
as my supreme good in this world, all the labour, con-
tempt, torment, suffering, and tribulation which may be
my lot, protesting, with S. Paul, that I desire no other
glory and no other paradise on earth " save the Cross of
my Lord Jesus Christ, by Whom the world is crucified
unto Me and I unto the world "• — " Mini absit gloriari,
nisi in cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi, per quern mihi
mundus crucifixus est, et ego mundo " (Gal. vi. 4).

VII.

I renounce myself, my mind, my self-love, my feelings
and inclinations, and my own will. I purpose never,
deliberately and with intention, to be guided by my
natural feelings, impulses, and inclinations, but to let
myself be led in all things by the impulsion of the Spirit
of Jesus, to Whom I yield and abandon myself wholly
for ever.

VIII.

Farewell to all the transitory desires of earth. If I per-
ceive any in my heart, I will stifle them, that I may have
one desire alone : to serve and love my God perfectly, to
fulfil in all things His holy Will, and to sacrifice my being
and my life for His glory.

314 The Reign of Jesus

IX.

I declare that I place my whole trust and confidence,
not in mine intelligence or in my good resolutions, nor in
my own strength, nor in my good deeds, nor in my friends,
nor in any created being, but solely in the goodness of
my God, and that I abandon myself wholly in temporal
and spiritual things, for time and for eternity, to the
leading of His divine Providence and to His holy Will.

X.

I have so entirely renounced my own will and have so
clothed myself with the Will of God, that, aided by the
grace of Jesus, I defy all mankind, all the devils, all
creatures, and all the powers of earth and hell, to do the
least thing contrary to my will, because I have no will
save the Will of my Lord.

Consequently I can say with truth that I am all I
desire to be ; that I possess all I desire to possess ; that
I do all I desire to do ; that nothing happens contrary to
my will, because I desire only to be, to have, to do, that
which God wills me to be, to have, to do ; and that I
will all that He wills, and nothing more.

XI.

Away with all the curiosities of the human mind and
the learning, vanities, and follies of the world ! As for
me, it sufficeth me to know that my Jesus is God — that
is to say, that He is All, that He is my All, and that I am
wholly His. Come what may, henceforward, in all times
and places, I shall be always content, because my Jesus
is always Jesus — that is to say, always full of glory, of
majesty, of felicity, of immutability, of immortality, of
light, of wisdom, of power, of happiness, and of a countless
and eternal wealth of perfection.

I desire no other satisfaction than the satisfaction of
my Jesus, no glory save His glory, no treasure save
His love. This is why I am always content, always rich,
and always joyful ; and no one can take from me my
treasure, my glory, and my joy

What We should Do each Year 315

XII.

1 declare openly before all men that my most heartfelt
desire is that the whole world should be an object of in-
difference to me, and that I myself should be reduced to
nothingness in order that my Jesus may be all in all things
in me ; in order that He may live, that He may reign,
that He may accomplish all His purposes without any
hindrance. I declare also that in all my devotions I
purpose never to separate Mary, Mother of Jesus, from
her Son, for, after Him, she is the chief object of my
affections ; she is the mother of my soul, the queen of my
heart, the protectress and the directress of my life, the
delight of mine intelligence, my life, my treasure, my
consolation, my refuge, and my most dear hope. I
declare that I make profession of serving and honouring
her for love of her Son in every way possible to me,
and that I desire to live and to die with this cry on my
lips : " Glory to Jesus and to Mary, whom I love more
than life !" (" (Euvres Completes," ii. 328)

VI. Exercises for the End of the Year.

In order to close each year of our life with Jesus,
we must imitate Jesus at the close of His mortal
and suffering life on earth. For this purpose, at
the end of each year we should set aside a short
time in order to fulfil the duty we owe to Jesus in
the way indicated in the following elevation :

ELEVATION TO JESUS FOR THE END OF EACH YEAR.

0 my Lord Jesus, I adore Thee, I love Thee, I
glorify Thee in the last day, the last hour, and the
last moment of Thy mortal and suffering life on
earth. I adore in Thee all which passed in Thee
outwardly and inwardly in that last day — that is
to say, Thy last thoughts, words, actions, suffer-
ings, the last use Tliou didst make of the senses

3 1 6 The Reign of Jesus

of Thy sacred Body, and the last dispositions of
Thy holy Soul, to which I desire henceforth to
unite myself in prevision of the last day of my
life.

O divine Jesus, I perceive by the light of faith
that in this last day of Thy life Thou didst in-
finitely adore and love Thy Father. Thou didst
worthily thank Him for all the grace bestowed on
Thee, and by Thee on all Christians, during the
time Thou didst pass on earth. Thou didst ask
forgiveness for the sins of all men, offering Thyself
to Him to bear the punishment due to them.
Thou didst think of me with deep love and a
great desire to draw me to Thee. And, lastly,
Thou didst sacrifice Thy Blood and Thy life, so
worthy and so precious, for the glory of Thy
Father and for love of us. Blessed be Thou a
thousandfold !

0 good Jesus, in honour of and in union with the
love, the humility, and the other holy dispositions
with which Thou didst accomplish these actions,
I give Thee infinite thanks for all the glory Thou
didst render to Thy Father during the time Thou
didst spend on earth ; and for all the graces which
Thou hast bestowed on me and on all mankind
during this year and throughout our life ; and for
those which Thou wouldst have bestowed on us if
we had not hindered Thine action.

1 most humbly beg Thy forgiveness for all the
outrages and indignities Thou didst receive on my
account whilst Thou wert on earth, and for the
offences I have committed against Thee during
this year. And in satisfaction for them I offer
Thee all the love and glory Thou didst receive
during Thy life on earth, and which Thou hast
received during this year, from Thine eternal

What We should Do each Year 317

Father, from Thy Holy Spirit, from Thy blessed
Mother, and from all Thine Angels and Saints. I
offer myself to Thee to endure, in this world and
the next, the penance it shall please Thee to inflict.

O most love-worthy Jesus, I adore the thoughts
and purposes which Thou didst deign to have with
regard to me in the last day of Thy life, and I give
myself to Thee to do and suffer all Thou shalt
desire for the accomplishment of these purposes.
Grant me rather to die a thousand deaths than to
hinder their fulfilment.

O good Jesus, I offer to Thee the last day, the
last hour, the last moment of my life, and all that
shall happen to me both outwardly and inwardly
in that last day — that is to say, my last thoughts,
words, actions, and sufferings, and the last use I
shall make of my bodily senses and of the faculties
of my soul. Grant that they may be consecrated
to the honour of the last day, hour, and moment
of Thy life. Grant me to die in the exercise of
Thy holy love. Grant that my being and my life
may be sacrificed to Thy glory, and that my last
breath may be an act of pure love for Thee. This
is my purpose, my desire, and my confident hope,
0 my dear Jesus, trusting as I do in the excess of
Thine infinite goodness. Grant, I beseech Thee,
by Thy great mercy, that so it may be.

ELEVATION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN FOR THE END
OF THE YEAR.

0 Mother of Jesus, Mother of Life, Mother of
the Eternal, the Immortal, I honour and revere
thee in the last day, in the last hour, in the last
moment, of thy life. I honour thee in all that
took place in thy sacred body and in thy holy

3 1 8 The Reign of Jesus

soul — that is to say, thy last thoughts, words, and
actions, the last use thou didst make of thy bodily
senses and of the faculties of thy soul, but, above
all, the last act of love thou didst utter for thy
Son Jesus.

I bless and thank thee with all my heart, O holy
Virgin, for all the glory thou didst render to God
throughout thy life, and for all the grace thou hast
obtained of His goodness for me and for all man-
kind, especially during this year.

I ask thy pardon, O Mother of Mercy, for all the
offences committed against thee while thou wert
on earth, and for all those which I have committed
against thee during this year. In satisfaction for
them I offer thee all the honour ever rendered thee
in Heaven and earth.

O Mother of love, I offer thee the last day, hour,
and moment of my life, and all which shall then
take place in me, in honour of the last day, hour,
and moment of thy life, and of all that then took
place in thee. Unite me, I beseech thee, to the
holy and divine dispositions of thy heart and soul
in that day. Obtain for me, by thy merits and
thy prayers, that my last thoughts, words, acts,
and breathings may be a homage to the last
thoughts, words, acts, and breathings of thy Son
and of thee ; that I may die in the exercise of His
holy love ; that I may be wholly consecrated and
sacrificed to His glory ; and that the last breath of
my life may be an act of pure love for Him.

0 Angels and Saints of Jesus, pray to Jesus that
He may accomplish in me all these things by His
great mercy and for His love's sake.

THIRD PART
ELEVATIONS AND PRAYERS

THE HOLY EXERCISE OF MEDITATION AFTER
THE METHOD OF THE BLESSED JEAN EUDES.

The Elevations are one of the riches of " The Reign of
Jesus." In them the Blessed Jean Eudes allows to flow
freely from his heart the treasures of piety with which
it is filled, and discloses to us the secrets of his inner life.
In them, also, he reveals to us his manner of holding inter-
course with God. By the examples which he places before
us he traces for us an admirable method of meditation.
To make this clear it suffices to gather together the Rules
scattered here and there throughout his works, especially
with regard to the manner of meditating and honouring
the mysteries of Jesus.

I. Preparation.

i. We should remind ourselves that we are about to
continue the meditation made by Jesus Himself.

2. We should unite ourselves to the dispositions that
Jesus had when He meditated.

3. We should acknowledge ourselves unworthy to
appear in the presence of God, and incapable of meditating
as we ought.

4. We should solicit the aid of the Spirit of Jesus, and
yield ourselves up to His guidance.

II. Meditation.

Application of the Mind. — There are seven points to be
considered in each of the mysteries of Jesus : (1) The
319

320 The Reign of Jesus

body, or outward part, of the mystery ; (2) the spirit, or
inward part, of the mystery ; (3) the general effects of
the mystery ; (4) the particular effects of the mystery ;
(5) the mystery in its relation to Mary ; (6) the mystery
in its relation to the Angels and Saints ; (7) our share in
the mystery.

Application of the Heart. — (1) Adoration of Jesus in all
the details of the mystery ; (2) admiration, joy, and love
at seeing Jesus so great and God so glorified in this
mystery ; (3) thanksgiving for the glory procured to God,
and for the grace merited for mankind by Jesus in this
mystery ("Gloria in excelsis Deo, pax hominibus");

(4) acts of humility for not having fittingly honoured this
mystery or profited by the graces which flow from it ;

(5) offering to Jesus of the praise which He has received
in Heaven and earth in this mystery ; (6) offering of our-
selves to Jesus to honour this mystery and to profit by
the graces conferred by it ; (7) prayer to Jesus that all
men may come to honour this mystery and to profit
by it.

Application of the Will. — (1) We should renew our
resolution to renounce ourselves, to offer ourselves un-
ceasingly to Jesus Christ, to unite ourselves constantly
to the dispositions of His Heart, in order ourselves to
continue His life. (2) We should take a special resolution,
humble and efficacious, corresponding to the virtue which
is the object of our efforts, to the day's duties, and to the
opportunities which are likely to present themselves.

III. Conclusion.

1. We should thank God for the graces bestowed on
us during our meditation.

2. We should ask forgiveness for our negligences, be-
seeching our Lord to supply what is lacking in us.

3. We should place our resolutions in the hands of our
Lord, so that He Himself may insure the keeping of
them.

4. We should arrange a spiritual bouquet — that is to
say, choose some thought or affection to keep in our mind
during the day.

5. We should implore the Virgin Mary, the Angels, and
Saints to continue our meditation for us.

Elevations and Prayers 321

I. Salutation to the Hearts of Jesus and
Mary (Ave, Cor).

Ave, Cor sanctissimum.
Ave, Cor mitissimum.
Ave, Cor humilissimum.
Ave, Cor purissimum.
Ave, Cor devotissimum.
Ave, Cor sapientissimum.
Ave, Cor patientissimum.
Ave, Cor obedientissimum.
Ave, Cor vigilantissimum.
Ave, Cor ndelissimum.
Ave, Cor beatissimum.
Ave, Cor misericordissimum.

Ave, Cor amantissimum,

Jesu et Mariae.
Te adoramus.
Te laudamus.
Te glorificamus .
Tibi gratias agimus.
Te amamus ex toto corde

nostro,
Ex tota anima nostra,
Et ex totis viribus nostris ;
Tibi, cor nostrum offerimus,
Donamus,
Consecramus,
Immolamus ;
Accipe et posssde ilium to-

tum,

Hail to You, O Hearts most

holy.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

gentle.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

humble.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

pure.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

devout.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

wise.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

patient.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

obedient.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

vigilant.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

faithful.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

blessed.
Hail to You, O Hearts most

merciful.
Hail to You, O most loving

Hearts of Jesus and Mary.
We revere You.
We praise You.
We glorify You.
We give You thanks.
We love You with all our

heart,
With all our soul,
And with all our strength ;
We offer to You our heart,
We give it to You,
We consecrate it to You,
We immolate it to You ;
Receive it, and possess it

wholly,

21

322 The Reign of Jesus

Et puririca, Purify it,

Et illumina, Enlighten it,

Et sanctirica, Sanctify it,

Ut in ipso vivas et regnas That You may live and

et nunc et semper, et in reign in it now, always,

saecula saeculorum. and for ever and ever.

Amen. Amen.

SALUTATION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY,
MOTHER OF GOD.

I hail thee, Mary, child of God the Father.

I hail thee, Mary, Mother of God the Son.

I hail thee, Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit.

I hail thee, Mary, Temple of the Divinity.

I hail thee, Mary, immaculate Lily of the splendid
and unchanging Trinity.

I hail thee, Mary, Rose of the celestial garden.

I hail thee, Mary, Virgin of virgins, most faithful
Virgin, of whom the King willed to be born.

I hail thee, Mary, Queen of Martyrs, whose soul
was transpierced by a sword of suffering.

I hail thee, Mary, Queen of the universe, to
whom all power is given in Heaven and earth.

I hail thee, Mary, Queen of my heart, my most
dear Mother, my life, my joy, my hope.

I hail thee, Mary, Mother worthy of love.

I hail thee, Mary, Mother worthy of admira-
tion.

I hail thee, Mary, Mother of mercy.

Thou art full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Thou art blessed among women.

And blessed be the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

And blessed be thy spouse, S. Joseph.

And blessed be thy father, S. Joachim.

And blessed be thy mother, S. Anne.

And blessed be thy son, S. John.

Elevations and Prayers 323

And blessed be thine Angel, S. Gabriel.

And blessed be the eternal Father Who chose
thee.

And blessed be the Son Who loved thee.

And blessed be the Holy Spirit Who espoused
thee.

And blessed for ever be all those who love and
bless thee.

May the Virgin Mary and her pious Child bless
us. Amen.

II. Morning Prayer.

Adoration. — O most adorable and love-worthy
Jesus, prostrate at Thy feet, conscious of my
nothingness, lost in the immensity of Thy Spirit,
in the infinity of Thy love, in the virtues and
powers of Thy Divinity and of Thine Humanity, I
adore Thee and glorify Thee, I bless and love Thee
in all Thy perfections, in all that Thou art in Thy-
self and in all things. I adore, I bless, and I love
in Thee, by Thee, and with Thee, the ever-blessed
Trinity. I give Thee thanks for the care with
which Thou hast watched over me during this
night. I offer Thee all the honour which has been
rendered Thee during this night in Heaven and
earth.

Oblation of Oneself. — 0 my Saviour, I offer and
consecrate myself to Thee, and by Thee to Thine
eternal Father, wholly, absolutely, and for ever.
I offer Thee my body, my soul, my mind, my
heart, my life, all the parts of my body, all the
faculties of my soul, all my thoughts, all my words,
all my actions, all my respirations, all the pulsa-
tions of my heart, all my steps, all my glances,
all the uses I make of my outward and inward

324 The Reign of Jesus

senses, and in general all which has been and will
be in me. I desire that all may be consecrated to
Thy glory, and that they may be so many acts of
praise, adoration, and pure love to Thee. Grant,
• I beseech, 0 my God, by Thine infinite power and
mercy, that so it may be.

Union with the Saints. — I offer Thee, 0 most
love- worthy Jesus, and by Thee to the blessed
Trinity, all the love and all the glory which shall
be offered Thee this day and throughout eternity
in Heaven and earth. I unite myself to all the
praise which has been, is, and ever will be given
to the Father by Thyself, by Thy Holy Spirit, by
the blessed Virgin, by all the Angels and Saints,
and by all creatures.

O Jesus, adore and love the Father and the Holy
Spirit for me.

O Father of Jesus, love and glorify Thy Son
Jesus for me.

O Holy Spirit of Jesus, love and glorify Jesus
for me.

O Mother of Jesus, bless and love thy Son Jesus
for me.

0 blessed S. Joseph, O Angels and Saints of
Jesus, adore and love my Saviour for me.

Acceptation oj Crosses. — Further, O my Lord
Jesus, I accept for love of Thee all the annoyances,
troubles, and afflictions of body and mind which
shall be my lot this day and throughout all my
life, and I offer myself to Thee to suffer for Thy
glory and Thy good pleasure all it shall please
Thee to inflict.

For the Hour oj Temptation. — I protest also that
I renounce from henceforth all the suggestions, all
the temptations of the Evil One ; that I loathe and
disavow all impulses, all feelings, all effects of

Elevations and Prayers 325

pride, self-love, and of all the other evil passions
and tendencies which have their root in my
soul.

Hatred of Sin. — Lastly, I beseech Thee, my
Saviour, to imprint in my heart a hatred, horror,
and dread of sin beyond all the evils of the world.
Grant that I may die rather than offend Thee
voluntarily, and give me grace to serve Thee
during this day and throughout my life faithfully
and lovingly, and to bear myself towards my
neighbour in a true spirit of charity, gentleness,
patience, obedience, and humility.

PRAYER TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN.

0 Mother of Jesus, Queen of Heaven and earth,
I hail and honour thee as my sovereign Lady, to
whom, after God, I belong, on whom, after God,
I depend. I render thee, so far as I am capable
of doing so, all the honour I owe thee, according
to the will of God, on account of thy greatness. I
give myself wholly to thee. Give me, I beseech
thee, to thy divine Son, and by thine intercession
obtain from Him that all that is in me be conse-
crated to His glory and to thine, and that I die
rather than forfeit His grace.

PRAYER TO S. JOSEPH.

O blessed S. Joseph, most honoured Father of
Jesus, and most worthy spouse of Mary, be thou
my father, my protector, and my guide to-day and
throughout all my life.

326 The Reign of Jesus

PRAYER TO OUR HOLY GUARDIAN ANGEL.

O my holy Angel, I offer myself to thee. Offer
me to Jesus and to His holy Mother. Beseech
them to give me grace to honour and love them
with the perfection they require of me.

PRAYER TO ALL THE ANGELS AND SAINTS.

0 holy Angels, 0 Saints of Paradise, I offer
myself to you. Do you offer me to Jesus, and
pray Him, I beseech you, to give me His holy
benediction in order that I may faithfully employ
this day in His service, and that I may die rather
than offend Him.

PRAYER TO ASK THE BLESSING OF JESUS AND OF
HIS MOTHER.

0 Jesus, give me, I beseech Thee, Thy holy
benediction. 0 Mary, Mother of Jesus, give me,
I beseech thee, thy holy benediction. " Nos cum
prole pia benedicat Virgo Maria."

IN TIME OF TROUBLE.
ELEVATION TO JESUS.

0 Jesus, my Lord, behold me prostrate at Thy
feet, adoring, blessing, and loving with all my
heart Thy divine Providence for all it pleaseth
Thee to ordain or permit with regard to me and
all concerning me ; for Thy commands and Thy
permissions, 0 great God, are equally adorable
and worthy of love. Yea, my Saviour, may Thy
will be done in all things and all places, in spite

Elevations and Prayers 327

of the repugnance of my will, and may Thy divine
ordinances and permissions be adored and glorified
for ever.

I acknowledge, 0 my God, in presence of Heaven
and earth, that Thou art just, and that I deserve
this trouble — what am I saying ? a thousandfold
more — for the least of my sins. For this reason, in
spite of all my repugnance, I desire to accept this
trouble with all the strength of my will, in order
to do homage to Thy divine justice by my sub-
mission to Thy holy Will. I desire also to accept
it in order to honour the great suffering Thou
didst endure on earth, for the accomplishment of
Thy purposes touching me, and as something which
comes from Thy hand and from Thy Heart so full
of love for me.

I bless Thee, 0 good Jesus, for that it hath
pleased Thee to give me an opportunity of suffer-
ing something for love of Thee. Grant me, I
beseech Thee, to share in the love, humility,
patience, gentleness, and charity with which Thou
didst suffer, and give me grace to endure all things
for Thy glory and for Thy pure love.

IN TIME OF TEMPTATION.

When there comes into your mind some evil
thought or other temptation, do not be uneasy,
but turn your mind and heart trustfully to Jesus,
and humble yourself before Him in order to ask
Him for strength, in this way :

ELEVATION TO JESUS.

I confess, O my Saviour, that my sins deserve
that Thou shouldest permit me to be, not tried

328 The Reign of Jesus

alone, but vanquished and overcome by all sorts
of temptations. I acknowledge that of myself I
have no strength to resist the least of them, and
that, didst Thou not sustain me in every minute
of my life, I should fall into a very hell of sins.
Alas ! my Jesus, in what horrible danger am I at
this moment ! I behold myself on the margin of
hell, close to the jaws of the infernal lion, on the
point of losing Thy grace, of being separated from
Thee, of becoming the bond-slave of Satan, and,
most terrible of all, of cruelly crucifying Thee, of
infinitely dishonouring Thee, if I allow myself to
be overcome by this temptation. Ah, Lord, do
not permit it ! Deliver me from this peril. Give
me grace and strength to make a good use of this
temptation, and to glorify Thee thereby. My
God, I renounce with all my strength the Evil
Spirit, sin, and all which is displeasing to Thee.
I give Thee my will. Guard it for me, I beseech
Thee, and do not permit it to cleave to the will of
Thine enemies. My Saviour, I conjure Thee by
Thy holy Passion and by all Thy goodness and
mercy, to grant me to suffer all the ignominy and
torments possible, even to die a thousand deaths,
rather than offend Thee.

III. Evening Prayer.

ACT OF THANKSGIVING.

O Jesus, my Lord, I adore Thee as the source
and principle, with Thy Father and Thy Holy
Spirit, of all that is good, holy, and perfect in
Heaven and earth, in the order of Nature, of grace,
and of glory. I refer to Thee all the gifts, celestial

Elevations and Prayers 329

and terrestrial, temporal and eternal, which have
ever emanated from Thee, especially those which
Thou hast this day bestowed in Heaven and
earth.

I bless and thank Thee a thousandfold for all
Thou art in Thyself and for all the effects of Thy
goodness on all Thy creatures, most especially on
me the most miserable of them all.

I offer Thee all the love, all the praise, which
have ever been rendered to Thee, but especially
those rendered Thee this day in Heaven and earth.
May all Thy Angels, all Thy Saints, all Thy
creatures, and all the faculties of Thy Divinity and
Thy Humanity bless Thee for ever.

EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE.

O Lord Jesus, I adore Thee as my Sovereign
Judge. I submit myself willingly to the power
Thou hast of judging me, and I esteem myself
happy that Thou shouldest have this power over
me. Enlighten me, I beseech Thee, with the light
by which Thou wilt show me my sins when I shall
appear before Thy tribunal at the hour of death,
so that, thus enlightened, I may know the sins
which I have committed against Thy divine
Majesty. Grant me also a measure of zeal for
Thy divine justice, and of the hatred Thou dost
bear to sin, that I may detest my sins as Thou
dost detest them.

After this, pass your day in review in order to
see how you have offended God. When you have
recognized in what you have sinned, accuse your-
self to Him and ask His forgiveness.

3 30 The Reign of Jesus

ACTS OF CONTRITION.

O my Saviour, I accuse myself before Thee, in
presence of all Thine Angels and Saints, of all the
sins I have committed in all my life, but especially
this day, against Thy divine Majesty. I beseech
Thee, Lord, by Thy great mercy, by the precious
Blood Thou didst shed for me, by the merits and
prayers of Thy blessed Mother, and of all Thine
Angels and Saints, to accord to me the grace of a
perfect contrition and of a profound repentance.

0 my God, I detest these my sins with all my
heart -and with all the strength of my will. I
detest them because of the offence, the insult, and
the dishonour they are to Thee. I detest them
because Thou dost detest them, and because they
are infinitely abhorrent to Thee. 0 good Jesus,
have not these my sins been the cause of Thy en-
during the most atrocious torments, of Thy shed-
ding Thy Blood to the last drop, and of Thy dying
the most cruel of all deaths ? It is because of this,

0 my dear Saviour, that I abhor them, and that

1 renounce them for ever. Oh, would that I could
feel the sorrow and contrition of S. Peter, of
S. Magdalene, and of all the holy penitents, that
I might weep for mine offences against my God !

Oh, if it were but possible, my God, that I
should have the same horror of my sins, that Thou
hast ! My Saviour, make me loathe them as Thou
dost loathe them, make me abhor them as Thou
dost abhor them, and to hold in abomination all
that is displeasing to Thee.

0 good Jesus, I give myself to Thee. Destroy
in me, I beseech Thee, all that is displeasing to
Thee. Atone for all the offences which I have

Elevations and Prayers 331

committed against Thine eternal Father, against
Thee, against Thy Holy Spirit, against Thy blessed
Mother, Thine Angels and Saints, and all Thy
creatures, and give me strength and grace never-
more to offend Thee.

0 Angels and Saints of Jesus, 0 Mother of Jesus,
supply, I beseech you, what is lacking in me.
Atone for the dishonour I have done my God by
my sins and render Him a thousandfold the love
and glory which I ought to have rendered Him
this day and throughout my life.

0 Mother of Jesus, Mother of mercy, beseech
thy Son to have mercy on me ; beseech Him to
give me grace nevermore to offend Him, but to
serve and love Him faithfully.

0 blessed S. Joseph, 0 my holy guardian Angel,
0 blessed S. John, blessed S. Magdalene, intercede
for me, that I may obtain mercy and grace to be
more faithful to my God.

OFFER YOUR REST TO JESUS.

0 Jesus, I offer Thee the rest I am about to
take, in honour of Thine eternal rest in the bosom
of the Father, and of the rest Thou didst take in
the womb of Thy Mother, and during the time
Thou wert on earth.

1 offer Thee all my respirations, all my heart-
throbs, all the pulsations of my veins, during this
night, and I desire that they may be so many
acts of praise and adoration. I unite myself to
all the praise which Thou shalt receive this night
in Heaven and earth ; and I beseech Thine Angels
and Saints, Thy blessed Mother, Thy Holy Spirit,
and Thine eternal Father, to love and glorify Thee
for me this night and through all eternity.

332 The Reign of Jesus

ACTS OF LOVE TOWARDS JESUS CRUCIFIED.

The following acts of love may be said as you
kiss your crucifix. It is well to use this exercise
every evening after your examination of con-
science and the prayers which follow, so as to close
the day with these acts of love to Jesus, and to
obtain from Him by this means the grace of ending
your life in the exercise of His holy love.

1. Kiss the foot of the Cross, and say in your
heart :

0 Jesus, in union with the love with which Thou
didst embrace and love the Cross which was laid
upon Thee in the day of Thy Passion, and which
was presented to Thee at the moment of Thine
Incarnation, I, too, love and embrace with all my
heart all the crosses of mind and body which it
shall please Thee to inflict on me throughout my
life, uniting them to Thine, and beseeching Thee
to make me to share the immense love with which
Thou didst bear Thy Cross.

2. Kiss the wounds of the sacred feet of Jesus,
with this desire :

O Jesus, I desire, if it please Thee, to kiss Thy
holy feet, with the same love wherewith S. Mag-
dalene kissed them in the house of the Pharisee,
when she merited to hear from Thy sacred lips
these sweet words : " Thy sins are forgiven
thee."

3. Kiss the feet of Jesus again, with this desire :
O Jesus, I desire to kiss Thy sacred feet, with

the love of all the devout souls which are on the
earth, and I offer Thee all this love in satisfaction
for the offences I have committed against Thy
love during my life.

Elevations and Prayers 333

4. Kiss the wound of the left hand, with this
intention :

O Jesus, I desire to kiss, if it please Thee, this
sacred wound, with all the love which Thy Arch-
angel S. Gabriel, all Thy Seraphim and Angels,
especially my guardian Angel, bear Thee, and
I offer Thee all this love in satisfaction for all
my negligences in Thy love throughout my life.

5. Kiss the wound of the right hand, with this
elevation of your heart to Jesus :

0 Jesus, I desire to kiss this sacred wound with
all the love borne Thee by all Thy Saints in
Heaven, and I offer Thee all this love in reparation
for all the offences I have ever committed against
Thy divine love.

6. Kiss the sacred wound of the side of Jesus, in
union with all the love of the blessed Virgin ; or,
rather, esteeming yourself unworthy to kiss this
holy wound, beseech the blessed Virgin to kiss it
for you, in this way :

O Mother of Jesus, kiss, I beseech Thee, for me,
the sacred wound of the side of Thy Son, and by
this holy kiss render Him an hundredfold all the
love which I should have rendered Him in my
whole life.

And instead of kissing the wound of the side,
kiss the feet, saying :

O Jesus, I desire, if it please Thee, to kiss Thy
sacred feet, in union with all the love which Thy
holy Mother has for Thee, and I offer Thee all this
love in reparation for my negligence in the exercise
of Thy love.

7. Kiss the holy wounds of the head of Jesus
crowned with thorns, or, rather, esteeming your-
self too unworthy, address yourself to the eternal
Father, and say to Him :

334 The Reign of Jesus

O Father of Jesus, give, I beseech Thee, a holy
kiss to Thy beloved Son, and with this divine kiss
give Him an hundred, thousandfold all the love
that I ought to have given Him during my life.

And instead of kissing the wounds of the head of
Jesus, kiss once more the wounds of His feet,
saying :

0 Jesus, let me kiss Thy holy feet with all the
love that Thine eternal Father beareth TJiee, as
far as that is possible, offering Thee all this love in
satisfaction for the offences I have committed
against Thy love.

8. Kiss also the holy feet of Jesus in union with
the love of the Holy Spirit, saying :

O Jesus, let me kiss Thy holy feet, in union with
the love which Thy Holy Spirit hath for Thee,
offering Thee all this love in satisfaction for all
the sins which I have ever committed against Thy
divine love.

9. Kiss once more these sacred feet, in union
with the love which Jesus bears Himself, saying
to Him with lips and heart :

O Jesus, permit me again to kiss Thy sacred
feet, with all the love which Thou hast for Thy-
self ; I offer Thee all this love in reparation for
my sins, and I beseech Thee to render Thyself an
hundredfold all the love I ought to have given
Thee since my birth.

io. Lastly, kiss these feet with all the love of
Heaven and earth, in this way :

0 Jesus, I kiss once more Thy divine feet with
all the love, so far as that is in my power, which
hath been, is, and will be, given Thee to all eter-
nity in Heaven and earth by all the divine and
holy persons who love Thee. I offer Thee all this
love in satisfaction for all the sins for all the

Elevations and Prayers 335

infidelities, and for all the negligences of which I
have been guilty against Thy love during all my
life.

I pray you to note that, in making these acts
of love, it is not necessary either to pronounce
the words with your lips, or even to have in your
mind at the moment the thoughts here sug-
gested, but it suffices to kiss the crucifix the
number of times and with the intentions indicated.
In this way the exercise can be done in a moment.
It is well, however, at first to have these thoughts
and intentions present to one's mind, then, when
one has practised this exercise for a little while, it
can be done with ease and in a very short space of
time.

One can also make these ten acts without a
crucifix, pronouncing ten times the holy Name
" Jesus " with the above intentions.

IV. Prayers during Mass.

ELEVATION FOR THE BEGINNING OF MASS.

0 my God, and my sovereign Lord, behold me
prostrate at Thy feet, imploring Thy mercy.
Deign, I beseech Thee, regard with compassion
a miserable creature who acknowledges and con-
fesses himself before Heaven and earth to be the
most unworthy and ungrateful of all Thy crea-
tures.

O Father of mercies, I accuse myself before Thee,
and before Thine Angels and Saints, of all the
vanity of my past life, of all the offences com-
mitted by me against Thy divine Majesty, of my

336 The Reign of Jesus

great coldness in responding to Thy holy love, of
my negligence in Thy holy service, and in fol-
lowing Thy inspirations, and of an infinite number
of sins which Thou alone knowest. Above all,
when I consider, 0 my God, that Thy beloved Son,
Whom I have come hither to adore, hath given to
me the very first moment of His life, I deem myself
most guilty for not having consecrated to Thee
the first use of the reason which I have received
from Thy divine Majesty.

O my Lord Jesus, Thou didst pass all Thy
days in poverty and suffering, and Thou didst
end them on the Cross for love of me. Thou didst
spend Thy life in the continual exercise of charity
towards my soul. And I, disposing of my days
and of my time as if they belonged to me, pass
them, for the most part, with futility, indifference,
and, too often, in sinning against Thy divine
Majesty. O my Saviour, make me to detest all
my sins, for the least of them is the cause of Thy
being born in a stable, and of Thy dying on a
Cross, that Thou mightest atone for it to the
justice of Thy Father.

0 my beloved Jesus, the least of the actions,
humanly divine and divinely human, which Thou
didst perform so oft for my salvation during the
three and thirty years which Thou didst spend on
earth, is of such value and of such merit that, had
it been performed once only, it would justly re-
quire from me in return that my whole life should
be spent gratefully and thankfully in Thy service
and in submission to Thy will. But this is what I
do not do ; on the contrary, it seems as though
I was born only in order to offend and dishonour
Thee. Oh, what ingratitude ! Oh, what infi-
delity ! Oh, how do I loathe my perfidy ! My

Elevations and Prayers 337

heart is full of compunction and sorrow, my most
loving Jesus, at seeing in myself such infidelity,
such ingratitude, so feeble a response to the great
and powerful love Thou hast for me. My God, I
plunge all my sins in the flood of Thy precious
Blood, in the abyss of Thy mercy, in the fire of
Thy divine love ; purge them, and consume them
wholly. Atone for all my negligences, O good
Jesus, and accept, in satisfaction for my sins, this
most holy sacrifice of Thy precious Body and Blood
which Thou didst offer on the Cross, and which I
offer Thee now with this intention. 0 my sweet
Love, it is unbridled love of self and of the world
which is the source of my offences ; I renounce this
sinful love with all my heart and with all my
strength for ever. O most love-worthy Jesus,
destroy in me this love of self, and establish in my
heart the reign of Thy divine love.

ELEVATION TO JESUS DURING MASS.

0 Jesus, my Lord and my God, Thou dost be-
come present on this altar in order that I may
contemplate and adore Thee, that I may love and
glorify Thee ; in order to communicate and apply
Thy merits to my soul, and to recall to my memory
the great love which caused Thee to suffer and die
for me on the Cross. O great God, I adore Thee,
I bless Thee and glorify Thee in every way possible
to me. O abyss of love, 0 infinite Goodness, O
immense Charity, why am I not all love for Thee ?
0 most beloved, most loving, and most love-
worthy Jesus, when shall I love Thee perfectly ?
would that my body and soul were wholly changed
into a Seraph's heart of flame ! Would I were
wholly transformed into an ardent fire, into a pure

22

338 The Reign of Jesus

flame of love, for Thee ! 0 Seraphim, 0 Angels
and Saints of Paradise, give me your love that I
may devote it all to loving Jesus ! 0 men, all ye
creatures capable of loving, give me all your
hearts, that 1 may offer them to my Saviour ! 0
most sweet Saviour, would it were possible for
me to have in my poor heart all the love of Heaven
and earth ! Oh, how gladly would I give it all
to Thee ! 0 Beloved of the eternal Father, 0
Treasure and Delight of Heaven and earth, how
art Thou at this moment adored, loved, and
glorified on this altar by the thousands of Angels
who surround Thee on all sides ! Oh, how shouldst
Thou be revered, praised, and loved by men! — for
it is for love of men, not Angels, that Thou art
there present. Ah ! would that Angels, men, and
all creatures of earth and Heaven were all trans-
formed into adoration and love for Thee ! But
let at least all the faculties of Thy Divinity and of
Thy Humanity be employed in glorifying and loving
Thee for ever !

0 most mighty Jesus, I adore the power of Thy
sacred word, by which Thou dost change the vile,
terrestrial substance of bread and wine into the
substance of Thy holy Body and Blood. I yield
myself to this Thy power, that by it the heavi-
ness, coldness, and dryness of my heart may be
changed into the warmth, tenderness, and holiness
of Thy divine Heart, and that I may be so trans-
formed in Thee that I may have but one heart, one
mind, one will, one soul, and one life with Thee.

O my most dear Redeemer, Thou art present on
this altar, in order to recall and represent to us
Thy painful Passion and Thy holy death. Grant
that I may have ever in me a perpetual remem-
brance of all Thou hast done and suffered for me :

Elevations and Prayers 339

grant that I may endure with humility, submis-
sion, and love for Thee, all the troubles which
shall come to me this day and throughout my life.

0 good Jesus, Thou dost so loathe sin that Thou
dost die in order to destroy it ; and Thou dost so
love my soul that Thou dost lay down Thy life
to give her life. Grant, O my Saviour, that I may
dread and abhor sin above all things ; that I may
esteem and seek nothing but Thy glory, and that

1 may hold all other things unworthy of my love
or of my hate.

ELEVATION TO JESUS CONSIDERED AS SOVEREIGN
PRIEST OFFERING HIMSELF ON THE ALTAR.

O Jesus, I adore Thee as the great High-Priest
and as exercising continually this office, whether
in Heaven or on earth by sacrificing Thyself for
the glory of Thy Father and for our love. Blessed
be Thou, O good Jesus, for the infinite honour
Thou dost render to Thy Father, and for the ex-
ceeding love for us of which Thou dost make
proof in this divine sacrifice. Thou art not con-
tent with sacrificing Thyself for us so often, but
Thou desirest also to unite us with Thee in this
great work, giving us a share in Thy character of
High-Priest, and giving us the power to perform,
in union with Thee, this great and admirable act
which Thou art now performing — that is to say,
to offer Thee, in union with Thee and with Thy
holy priests, for the glory of Thy Father and for
our own salvation. Unite me, therefore, to Thee,
0 divine Jesus, as it is Thy pleasure that I should
now offer, in union with Thee, this most holy
sacrifice. Grant that I may offer it with the
holy and divine dispositions with which Thou

34-Q The Reign of Jesus

dost offer it. Oh, with what devotion, with what
charity towards us, with what zeal and love for
Thy Father dost Thou perform this action ! Im-
print in me, I beseech Thee, these dispositions, that
I may do, in union with Thee, that which Thou
dost so holily and so divinely.

0 Father of Jesus, Thou hast given us Thy Son ;
Thou hast, as it were, placed Him in our hands
and in our possession by means of this mystery.
I can, therefore, offer Him to Thee as something
which is truly mine, and I desire so to offer Him
in union with the humility, purity, charity, love
and all the other holy dispositions with which
He offereth Himself to Thee.

So, too, I desire to offer this sacrifice with the
same intentions with which He doth sacrifice Him-
self. I therefore offer it :

1. In honour of all Thou art, 0 my God, in Thy
divine Essence, in all Thy divine perfections, in
Thy eternal Persons, and in all the workings of
Thy Providence. I offer it in honour of all Thy
Son Jesus is in Himself, in all His states, mys-
teries, qualities, virtues, actions, and sufferings
and of all His dealings with His creatures, whether in
mercy or in justice, in Heaven, on earth, or in hell.

2. I offer it in thanksgiving for all the benefits,
all the temporal and spiritual graces which Thou
hast bestowed on the sacred Humanity of Thy Son,
on His holy Mother, on all the Angels, on all man-
kind, on all creatures, and especially on me, the
most unworthy of all Thy creatures.

3. I offer it to Thee in satisfaction for all the
dishonour which is caused Thee by the sins of the
world, especially by mine, and by those of the
persons for whom I am particularly bound to pray,
whether living or dead.

Elevations and Prayers 341

4. I offer it to Thee for the fulfilment of all Thy
purposes, particularly of those which Thou dost
deign to have with regard to me and those con-
nected with me, beseeching Thee not to permit us
to be a hindrance to them.

5. I beseech Thee, 0 my God, in virtue of this
holy oblation and most precious gift which I offer
Thee, that Thou wouldst be pleased to grant us
all the graces, spiritual and corporal, necessary
to enable us to serve and love Thee perfectly,
and to be wholly and for ever Thine.

ELEVATION TO JESUS, CONSIDERED AS VICTIM,
SACRIFICED TO GOD IN THE MASS.

O Jesus, I consider and adore Thee in this
mystery as a Victim most holy and sacred, who
doth bear and who doth take away the sins of the
world, and whom Thou dost here immolate for the
glory of God and for the salvation of men. I learn
by the mouth of Thine Apostle that Thou dost
desire that we, too, should be living, holy victims,
worthy to be sacrificed with Thee for the glory of
Thy Father. O my Saviour, in union with the
sacrifice of Thyself which Thou dost offer to Thy
Father, I offer myself to Thee, that I may be for
ever the bloody and unbloody victim of Thy will —
a victim immolated to Thy glory and to the glory
of Thy Father. Unite me to Thee, 0 good Jesus,
in this character of victim ; make me a part of Thy
sacrifice, so that I may be sacrificed with Thee and
by Thee. And as it is necessary that the victim
be immolated, slain, and consumed by fire, grant
that I may die to myself — that is to say, to my
vices and to my passions, and to all that is dis-
pleasing to Thee. Consume me, I beseech Thee,

342 The Reign of Jesus

in the sacred fire of Thy divine love, and grant
that my whole life may be a continual sacrifice
of praise and love to Thy Father and to Thee.

ELEVATION TO JESUS FOR SPIRITUAL
COMMUNION.

O most kind and most love-worthy Jesus, I am
not worthy to think of Thee or that Thou shouldst
think of me ; still less am I worthy to appear before
Thee, or that Thou shouldst deign to become
present to me here. Nevertheless, not only dost
Thou think of me and become present to me in
Thy Holy Eucharist, but Thou dost desire also to
give Thyself to me and to take up Thine abode in
my soul. Ah, Lord ! how admirable are Thy
mercies ! how great is Thy loving-kindness ! And
what is there in me, miserable creature, full of sin
and corruption, which is capable of attracting
Thee hither ? Assuredly, it is Thine exceeding
charity which impels Thee to this. Come, 0 come,
then, 0 my most sweet Jesus, for I love Thee, and
have an infinite desire to receive Thee. Alas !
would I were wholly changed into sighs, desire,
longing, and love for Thee ! Come, Light of my
soul ; come, my Beloved — haste Thee to come
into my heart, which, renouncing all things,
desire th Thee alone. O King of my heart, O Life
of my soul, 0 my most precious Treasure, O my
only Joy, 0 my Jesus, most dear, most longed-for
and most beloved ! O my All, come into my
mind, come into my heart, come into my soul, that
Thou mayest destroy in me my pride, my self-
love, my will, all my vices and imperfections.
Come, that Thou mayest establish in me Thy
humility, Thy charity, Thy gentleness, Thy

Elevations and Prayers 343

patience, Thine obedience, Thy zeal, and all Thy
other virtues. Come, that Thou may est love and
glorify Thyself in me worthily. Come, that Thou
mayest unite my spirit with Thy Spirit, my heart
with Thy sacred Heart, my soul with Thy most
holy Soul ; that this heart, this body, and this
soul which are so oft and so closely united to Thy
Heart, Thy Body, and Thy Soul in the Holy
Eucharist, may never have other feelings, affec-
tions, desires, and passions than those of Thy
sacred Heart, of Thy holy Body, and of Thy
divine Soul. Come, O my Jesus, come into my
heart that Thou mayest live and reign in me for
ever. Veni, Domine Jesu.

ELEVATION TO JESUS FOR THE END OF MASS.

O most love-worthy Saviour, I give Thee in-
finite thanks and praise, and I pray all the Angels,
and Saints, and all creatures to bless and glorify
Thee with me, for the grace Thou hast bestowed
on me by this divine Sacrifice. Keep and in-
crease in me, I beseech Thee, all the holy desires,
thoughts, affections, and feelings with which
Thou hast inspired me during this Mass, and give
me grace to carry them out in the way Thou dost
desire of me. Thou hast abased Thyself and hast
become present to me in this holy mystery ; grant,
I beseech Thee, that throughout this day I may
not let pass an hour without raising myself to
Thee by the affections of my heart. Thou hast
come down to this altar that Thou mightest take
possession of our hearts and receive from us the
homage we owe to Thee as our sovereign Lord :
take, then, possession of my heart, O good Jesus ;
I give it, I consecrate it to Thee for ever ; I acknow-

344 The Reign of Jesus

ledge Thee, I adore Thee as my King and my God.
I offer Thee my whole being, my life and all my
actions, especially those which I shall perform
this day ; dispose of all according to Thy good
pleasure, and grant me rather to die than to offend
Thee. Grant that I may be a victim at once dead
and living — dead to all save Thee, living in Thee
and for Thee. Grant that all my life may be a
perpetual sacrifice of praise and love to Thee,
and that I may be wholly immolated and consumed
for Thy glory and Thy holy love. To this end
I beseech Thee with all my heart, 0 good Jesus,
to give me Thy holy benediction.

V. Prayers before Holy Communion.

Act oj Faith. — 0 Jesus, my light and my sancti-
fication, open the eyes of my mind, fill my soul
with Thy grace, that I may know the importance
of the action I am about to perform, and that I
may perform it holily and worthily for Thy glory.

Let me consider how grand and how wondrous
is the action I am about to perform, and how
holy and how lofty is He Whom I am about to
receive. This action is the noblest, most important,
most holy, and most divine it is possible for me
to perform. I am about to receive within my lips
and in my heart, in the deepest recesses of my
soul, my God, . my Creator, my Saviour, my
sovereign Lord, my Jesus. Yea, I am about to
receive within my breast, verily and indeed, this
same Jesus, in person, Who dwelleth from all
eternity in the bosom of His Father ; this same
Jesus Who is the life, the glory, the treasure, the
love, and the delight of the eternal Father ; this

Elevations and Prayers 345

same Jesus Whom so many patriarchs, prophets,
and righteous of the Old Testament desired to see,
and did not see Him ; this same Jesus Who passed
nine months in the womb of the Blessed Virgin,
Whom she nourished with her milk, and Whom
she so often carried in her arms ; this same Jesus
Who lived and walked on earth, eating and drinking
in company with sinners ; this same Jesus Who
was nailed to the Cross ; this same body which
was bruised, wounded, and immolated for me ;
this same blood which watered the ground ; this
same heart which was pierced by the lance, I shall
receive it in my heart ; this same soul of Jesus
which, when dying on the Cross, He committed
into His Father's hands, I shall receive it in my
soul. What marvels ! What ! I am to receive
in my heart this same Saviour, Who ascended
gloriously and triumphantly into heaven, Who
sitteth on the right hand of God, and Who will
come again at the end of time, full of power and
majesty, to judge the universe.

Act of Humility. — O great and admirable Jesus !
the Angels who are purer than the sun, deem not
themselves worthy to look upon Thee, to praise
and love Thee ; and this day, not only dost Thou
permit me to look upon Thee, to adore and to
love Thee, but Thou desires t that I should receive
Thee into my heart, and thus possess in me the
entire Divinity, the most Holy Trinity, and
Paradise itself. Ah, Lord, how good Thou art !
Whence cometh this happiness to me that the
King of heaven and earth should deign to take
up His abode in me, who am a very hell of sin and
imperfection, that He may change me into a
paradise of grace and blessing ? O my God, how
unworthy am I of so great a favour ! Assuredly,

346 The Reign of Jesus

I acknowledge it in presence of Heaven and earth,
I deserve rather to be plunged into the lowest
depth of hell, than to receive Thee into my soul,
so full of vices and imperfections.

Act oj Oblation. — But as it doth please Thee, 0 my
Saviour, thus to give Thyself to me, I, too, desire to
receive Thee with all the purity, love, and devotion
of which I am capable. To this end I give Thee
my heart, O good Jesus ; do Thou prepare it in
the way it shall please Thee ; destroy in me all that
is opposed to Thee ; fill me with Thy divine love,
and with all the other graces and dispositions with
which Thou dost desire that I should receive Thee.

0 Father of Jesus, destroy in me all that is
displeasing to Thy Son, and make me to share in
the love Thou bearest Him, and with which Thou
didst receive Him in Thy bosom on the day of
His Ascension.

0 Holy Spirit of Jesus, I offer Thee my heart ;
adorn it, I beseech Thee, with all the graces and
virtues necessary for receiving my Saviour.

O Mother of my God, make me to partake, I
beseech Thee, in the faith and devotion, in the
love and humility, in the purity and holiness, with
which thou didst so oft communicate after the
Ascension of thy Son.

O holy Angels, 0 blessed Saints, I offer you
also my heart ; present it to my Jesus, and pray
Him to prepare it Himself, to make me participate
in your purity and holiness, and in the very deep
love you bear Him.

O my dear Jesus, I offer Thee all the humility
and devotion, all the purity and holiness, all the
love, and all the preparation with which Thou
hast ever been received by all the holy souls on
earth. My will is to have in me all this love and

Elevations and Prayers 347

devotion ; were it possible, I would even desire
to have in me the holy fervour and all the divine
love of all the Angels, of all the Seraphim, of all
the Saints in Heaven and earth, that I might
receive Thee more worthily. O my sweet Love,
Thou art all love for me in this Sacrament of love,
and Thou dost come to me impelled by an infinite
love. Alas ! why am not I, too, all love for Thee,
that I might receive Thee in a heart all transformed
into love for Thee ?

Act of Union with Jesus. — But, O my Saviour,
there is no place worthy of Thee, unless it be
Thyself ; there is no love which can receive Thee
worthily, unless it be Thine own love. For this
reason, that I may receive Thee, not in myself,
for I am too unworthy, but in Thee, and with all
the love Thou dost bear Thyself, I lay myself at
Thy feet, I empty myself of myself, I give myself
to Thee, and I beseech Thee to annihilate me, to
take possession of me, to fill me with Thy divine
love, so that, coming to me by Holy Communion,
Thou mayst be received, not in me, but in Thee,
and with all the love which Thou hast for Thyself.

Note well this last act, for it contains the true
disposition for receiving fittingly the Son of God
in Holy Communion. It is the best of prepara-
tions, comprising as it does all the others, and I
have placed it at the end of these elevations for
those souls which are most spiritually minded.

Prayers after Holy Communion.

Act of Admiration. — O Jesus, 0 my God, my
Creator, my Saviour and my sovereign Lord,
what a marvel ! I possess really, at this moment,

34^ The Reign of Jesus-

in the deepest recesses of my soul, Him, Who
dwelleth from all eternity in the bosom of the
Father ! I bear in my heart the same Jesus Whom
the blessed Virgin bore in her pure womb ! This
loving heart of Jesus, on which reposed the beloved
disciple, and which, on the Cross, was pierced by
the lance, reposes, at this moment, in my heart ;
His most holy soul lives in my soul. Even the
Divinity, the most Holy Trinity, all that is most
admirable in God and in all Paradise, has come
down into me, a miserable and unworthy creature.
O God, how merciful, how good Thou art ! What
can I say, what can I do in presence of things so
great and marvellous ? Ah, my Lord Jesus, let
all my faculties of body and soul prostrate them-
selves before Thy divine majesty, to adore Thee
and render Thee the homage which is Thy due !
Let Heaven and earth, and all creatures therein,
come now and prostrate themselves at Thy feet, and
render Thee, with me, homage and adoration.
But, my God, what temerity on my part to have
received Thee — Thee, the Holy of holies — into
an abode so impure, and with so little love and
preparation. I ask Thy forgiveness, my Saviour,
with all my heart, for this and for all the other
sins and ingratitude o£my past life.

Act of Thanksgiving. — O most sweet, most dear,
most desirable, and most love-worthy Jesus !
O beloved of my soul, object of my love, my life,
my soul, my heart, mine only love, my treasure,
and my glory, my one joy and mine only hope !
My Jesus, what can I think of Thine exceeding
goodness to me ? What thanksgiving can I make
to Thee ? Ah, my Saviour, I offer Thee all the
thanksgiving which has ever been, and ever will
be, rendered Thee by Thy holy Mother, by all Thy

Elevations and Prayers 349

Angels, by Thy Father, by Thy Holy Spirit, and
by all the holy souls who have ever received Thee
in Holy Communion. My God, may all that is in
me be changed into praise and love of Thee !
May Thy Father, Thy Holy Spirit, Thy blessed
Mother, all Thy Angels, all Thy Saints, and all
Thy creatures bless Thee for me for ever ! Father
of Jesus, Holy Spirit of Jesus, Mother of Jesus
Angels and Saints of Jesus, bless Jesus for me.

Act of Oblation. — O good Jesus, Thou hast
given Thyself to me with a very deep love. With
this same love I, too, give myself wholly to Thee.
I offer Thee my body, my soul, my life, my thoughts,
my words, my actions, and all belonging to me ;
and I thus give myself to Thee, that Thou mayst
dispose of me and all belonging to me, for time
and for eternity in the way it shall please Thee
solely for Thy glory. O my Lord and my God,
employ the strength of Thine arm, to ravish me
from myself, from the world, and from all that is
not Thee, that Thou mayest possess me wholly.
Destroy in me my self-love, my will, my pride
and all my other vices, together with my unbridled
affections. Establish in my soul the reign of Thy
pure love, of Thy holy glory, and of Thy divine
Will, that henceforth I may love Thee perfectly ;
that I may love nothing save in Thee and for Thy
sake ; that my content may be in contenting Thee,
my glory in glorifying Thee, and in procuring
Thy glory, and my supreme felicity in accomplish-
ing Thy holy Will. 0 good Jesus, make Thy
humility, Thy charity, Thy gentleness and
patience, Thy obedience, Thy modesty, Thy
chastity, and all Thy other virtues, reign in my
soul. Clothe me with Thy Spirit, with Thy feelings
and inclinations, so that I may have no feelings,

35° The Reign of Jesus

no desires, no inclinations other than Thine.
Lastly, I beseech Thee, destroy in me all that is
opposed to Thee, that Thou mayest love and
glorify Thyself in me in every way pleasing to Thee.
0 my Saviour, I offer Thee all those for whom
it is my duty to pray, especially (N.N.). Destroy
in them all that is displeasing to Thee ; fill them
with Thy divine love ; accomplish in their souls
the purposes of Thy goodness, and grant to them
that which I have asked for myself.*

THREE ACTS OF ADORATION, OBLATION, AND LOVE
TO JESUS.

As we are on earth solely in order to honour
and love Jesus, and as we belong to Him
by right for an infinite number of reasons,
our chief care, object, and occupation should be
to adore and love Him, and to give and unite
ourselves unceasingly to Him. This is why, it
will be well, either after Holy Communion, or
during the day — for instance, during our visit to

* The Blessed Jean Eudes recommends the recitation
of prayers in order to gain the Indulgences in favour
of the souls in Purgatory. Pius IX. encouraged this
pious practice by according a plenary Indulgence to all
who say the following prayer kneeling before the image
of Jesus crucified :

" O good and most sweet Jesus, I prostrate myself
before Thee. I pray and conjure Thee, with all the
fervour of my soul, to grave in my heart lively feelings
of faith, hope, and charity, a true repentance for my
sins, and a firm will to correct myself, the while I consider
and contemplate in spirit Thy five Wounds, with great
affection and sorrow, having before mine eyes these
words, which already the prophet David put on Thy lips,
O good Jesus : ' They have pierced My hands and My feet ;
they have counted all My bones.' " [Some prayers must
be added for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff.]

Elevations and Prayers 351

the Blessed Sacrament — to recite the three follow-
ing acts, in order to unite ourselves closely to
Jesus, and to place ourselves in a position of
absolute dependence on Him, and to cultivate
a spirit of love and confidence towards Him.
To this end, we must say these acts, not rapidly
and hurriedly, but slowly and attentively.

1. Act of Adoration to Jesus. — O great and ad-
mirable Jesus, I adore and honour Thee as my God
and my sovereign Lord on Whom I depend, and,
to Whom I belong. I adore and honour Thee
with all my strength and in every way possible to
me ; I offer Thee all the adoration and honour
which have been, are, and will for ever be, rendered
Thee in Heaven and earth.

Oh, would I were wholly transformed into
adoration and praise towards Thy divine Person.
Oh, let Heaven and earth adore Thee with me now,
and let all that is contained therein be changed into
an act of adoration to Thee !

2. Act 0} Oblation to Jesus. — O Jesus, my Lord,
I belong to Thee of necessity for a thousand
reasons, but I desire also to belong to Thee of my
own free-will. To this end I give and consecrate
wholly to Thee my body, my soul, my life, my
heart, my mind, all my thoughts, all my words,
all my actions, all that depends on, or belongs to,
my being and my life ; desiring that all which
has been, is, and shall be, in me may belong to
Thee absolutely, solely, and for ever. I make to
Thee this offering and this gift of myself, not only
with all my strength and energy, but that I may
do it more efficaciously and more holily, I offer
and give myself to Thee, by the virtue of Thy
grace, with all the faculties of Thy mind, with all
the strength of Thy divine love, which is mine,

352 The Reign of Jesus

for all that is Thine is mine. And I beseech Thee,

0 my Saviour, by Thy great mercy, Thyself to
employ the strength of Thine arm and the power
of Thy Spirit and of Thy love, to draw me from
myself and from all that is not Thee, that Thou
mayest possess me perfectly and for ever, for the
greater glory of Thy holy Name.

3. Act oj Love to Jesus. — 0 most love-worthy
Jesus, as Thou art all goodness and all love, and
as Thou hast created me solely that I might love
Thee, and as Thou dost ask nothing of me save that

1 should love Thee ; so I desire to love Thee, O my
most sweet Jesus — I desire to love Thee with all
my heart, with all my soul, and with all my
strength. But that is not enough. I desire to
love Thee with all the strength of Thy divine Will,
with all the power of Thy heart, and with all the
energy of Thy love ; for all this is mine, and I may
make use of it as my own, for, in giving me Thy-
self Thou hast given me all that is Thine. 0 my
Saviour, I purpose to destroy in myself, cost what
it may, all that is opposed to Thy love. 0 good
Jesus, I give myself to Thee, that I may love Thee
with all the perfection which Thou dost require
of me.

Do Thou destroy in me all that is an obstacle to
Thy love, and do Thou love Thyself in me in every
way pleasing to Thee, for I give myself to Thee to
do and suffer all that it shall please Thee to im-
pose upon me, for Thy pure love.

O Jesus, I offer Thee all the love which has
been, is, and will be for ever borne Thee in Heaven
and earth. Oh, let the whole world love Thee
now with me, and let all that is therein be con-
verted into a pure flame of love to Thee. 0
Father of Jesus, Holy Spirit of Jesus, Mother of

Elevations and Prayers 353

Jesus, blessed S. Joseph, blessed S. Gabriel, Angels
and Saints of Jesus, love Jesus for me, and render
Him an hundredfold all the love I ought to have
rendered Him in all my life, and which He ought
to have received from all the Angels and men who
exist or who will exist eternally.

PRAYER TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, MOTHER
OF GOD.

0 holy Virgin, Mother of God, Queen of men
and Angels, marvel of Heaven and earth, I revere
thee in every way that is pleasing to God and to thy
Son Jesus Christ our Lord, and owing to thee on
account of thy dignity. I offer thee my soul and
my life ; I desire to belong to thee for ever, and to
render thee the homage of my dependence in time
and throughout eternity. Mother of grace and
mercy, I choose thee for the mother of my soul, in
honour of the goodness of God, Who deigned to
choose thee for His Mother, and as Queen of
men and Angels. I accept and acknowledge thee
as my sovereign Lady, in honour of the depen-
dence in which the Son of God, my Saviour and
my Lord, willed to place Himself towards thee as
His Mother ; and in this character I give thee, over
my soul and my life, all the power which it is
God's good pleasure that thou shouldst have. 0
holy Virgin, look upon me as thine, and of thy
goodness treat me as subject to thy power and the
object of thy mercy.

O source of life and of grace, refuge of sinners, I
have recourse to thee, that thou mayest deliver
me from sin and preserve me from eternal death.
Take me under thy protection, 0 holy Virgin ;
permit me to share thy privileges, and let me

23

354 The Reign of Jesus

obtain by thy dignity and thy merit that to which
I have no right, on account of my iniquities : that
my last hour — the hour on which my eternity
depends — may .be under thy protection, and that
it may honour the joyful moment of the Incarna-
tion, when God became Man and thou didst become
the Mother of God.

O Thou who art both Virgin and Mother ! O
sacred temple of the Divinity ! O marvel of
Heaven and earth ! O Mother of God, I am thine
by right of thy dignity, but I desire to belong to
thee by my own choice and by my own free-
will. I give myself to thee and to Thy Son Jesus
Christ our Lord. I will not pass a single day
without rendering to Him and to thee some special
homage and some testimony of the dependence
and servitude in which I desire to die and to live
for ever. Amen. Ave Maria.

ROSARY OF THE HOLY LOVE OF JESUS TO BE USED
DURING THE THANKSGIVING AFTER COMMUNION.

This Rosary begins with the prayer, " Veni.
sancte Spiritus, reple tuorum corda fidelium et
tui amoris in eis ignem accende " — " Come, 0 Holy
Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy people, and kindle in
them the fire of Thy love."

At each small bead one says these words, taken
partly from the Gospel (S. John xxi. 15) and
partly from S. Augustine (" Manual," c. x.), in
imitation of S. Peter, who answered three times
Amo te to our Lord, when, after His Resurrection,
He asked if he loved Him : " Amo te, amantissime
Jesu ; amo te, bonitas infinita ; amo te ex toto
corde meo, ex tota anima mea, et ex totis yiribus
meis et magis atque magis amare volo "—"I love

Elevations and Prayers 355

Thee, 0 most love-worthy Jesus ; I love Thee, 0
infinite Goodness ; I love Thee with all my heart,
with all my soul, and with all my strength ; and
I desire to love Thee ever more and more."

At the large beads of the Rosary one says these
words of S. Augustine : " O ignis qui semper
ardes et nunquam extingueris, 0 amor qui semper
ferves et nunquam tepescis, accende me, ac-
cende me totum, ut totus diligam te " — " O fire,
who art always burning, and who never diest out ;
O love who art always fervent, and who never
growest cold, enkindle me, inflame me, that I
may be wholly consumed by love for thee."

This exercise is excellent after Holy Com-
munion, for having in us at that time in a special
way the love of the Father, of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit, together with the divine Heart and
holy Soul of Jesus, and all the faculties of His
Divinity and of His Humanity, we have more than
ever the right to make use of all these things as
of things belonging absolutely to us, in order to
love Jesus. It is then that we can affirm to Him
with truth : " Amo te, amantissime Jesu, amo
te. . . ."

It is also well, after Holy Communion, to repeat
this verse of the Psalmist : " Benedic, anima mea,
Domino ; et omnia quae intra me sunt, nomini
sancto ejus " — " Praise the Lord, O my soul, and
all that is within thee, bless His holy Name "
(Ps. cii. 1), understanding these words as applying
to Jesus, Who is then within us, the Soul of our
soul ; understanding them, also, as applying to the
most Holy Trinity and to all the wonders of
Heaven and earth which we possess in the Holy
Eucharist — the epitome of all the marvels of God.
We should pray, now that we possess all this

356 The Reign of Jesus

within us, that all may be employed in blessing
and glorifying Jesus for us, and in glorifying and
loving the Blessed Trinity and the fulness of the
Divinity which dwelleth in Jesus.

VI. Christian Professions.

The Christian life and holiness is established on
eight principal foundations, the first of which is
faith ; the second, hatred of sin ; the third, hu-
mility ; the fourth, the abnegation of self, of the
world, and of all things ; the fifth, submission and
the abandonment of oneself to the will of God ;
the sixth, the love of Jesus and of His holy
Mother ; the seventh, the love of the Cross ; the
eighth, charity towards one's neighbour. These
are the principles of heavenly theology, of Christian
philosophy, of the science of the Saints, which our
Lord Jesus Christ drew from the bosom of His
Father, which He brought down to us on earth,
which He taught by His words and even more by
His example, and which we are bound to follow if
we desire to be Christians. It is to this that we
engaged ourselves by the promises and solemn
profession of our Baptism, and for this reason it is
most important that we should renew this pro-
fession, as contained in the following acts, of which
you can repeat one or all each day of the week.

SUNDAY.
A PROFESSION OF CHRISTIAN FAITH.

O Jesus, I adore Thee as the Author and Finisher
of our Faith, as the eternal Light, and as the source
of all light. I give Thee infinite thanks that it

Elevations and Prayers 357

hath pleased Thee, in Thy great mercy, to call
me from the darkness of sin and hell into Thy
glorious light, which is the light of faith. I beg
Thy forgiveness a thousand times in that I have
not allowed myself to be guided in the past by
this divine light, acknowledging that I have oft
deserved, by the wrong use I have made of it, to
be deprived thereof ; and protesting that I desire
henceforth to live only according to the word of
the Apostle, who asserts that the just live by
faith (Rom. i. 17). To this end I give myself to
the Spirit of Thy holy Faith ; and in the power of
this Spirit, and in union with the most lively and
perfect faith of Thy blessed Mother, of Thy holy
Apostles, and of all Thy holy Church, I profess,
before Heaven and earth, and am ready, with the
help of Thy grace, to do so in presence of all the
enemies of this Faith :

1. That I believe firmly all that Thou dost teach
us, by Thyself, or by Thy holy Church.

2. That I am willing to shed my blood and lay
down my life, to endure all kinds of torments,
rather than renounce in a single point this belief,
or adhere, in ever so slight a degree, to errors which
are opposed to it.

3. That I desire to live and to conduct myself
henceforward, not according to my senses, like
the brute beasts, or according to the light of human
reason alone, like the philosophers, but according
to the light of faith, like a true Christian, and
according to the maxims of this same Faith which
Thou hast left us in Thy holy Gospel.

Preserve and strengthen in me, 0 my Saviour,
these holy resolutions, and give me grace to
keep them perfectly, for the glory of Thy holy
Name.

35 8 The Reign of Jesus

MONDAY.
A CHRISTIAN PROFESSION OF HATRED OF SIN.

O Jesus, I adore Thee in Thine unspeakable holi-
ness and in the infinite hatred that Thou hast for sin.
I ask Thy forgiveness, from the depths of my heart,
for all the sins which I have committed during
all my life. I give myself to Thy spirit of holiness
and of hatred for sin. In this spirit I profess :

i. That I hate and loathe sin, more than death,
more than the Devil, more than hell, more than
all the most detestable things one can imagine.

2. That I hate nothing save sin alone, and that
I will never of set purpose grieve for aught save
for the offences committed against Thy divine
Majesty ; for there is nothing in the world which
merits our enmity or which deserves to be the
cause of our sadness, save this infernal monster.

3. That I hate sin to such a degree that, did I
behold all the torments of earth and hell on one
side and one single sin on the other, I would, aided
by Thy grace, choose the first rather than the
second. 0 my God, preserve and increase in my
heart ever more and more this hatred of sin.

TUESDAY.
A PROFESSION OF CHRISTIAN HUMILITY.

O most adorable and most humble Jesus, I
adore and bless Thee in Thy most deep humility.
I abase myself in Thy presence, and am con-
founded at the sight of my pride and vanity, for
which I most humbly ask Thy forgiveness. I give
myself, with all my heart, to Thy spirit of humility.
In this spirit, and with all the humility of Heaven

Elevations and Prayers 359

and earth, plunged in the abyss of my nothingness,
I acknowledge in presence of the whole world :

1. That I am nothing, that I possess nothing,
that I am capable of nothing, that I know nothing,
that I am worth nothing, and that consequently
I have, of myself, no strength to resist the least
evil or to accomplish the least good.

2. That of myself I am capable of all the crimes
of Judas, of Pilate, of Herod, of Lucifer, of
Antichrist, and of all the sins of earth and of hell ;
and that if Thou didst not sustain me by Thy great
goodness, I should fall into a hell of all kind of
abominations.

3. That I deserve the wrath of God and of all
God's creatures, and everlasting punishment.

This is my portion ; this is my subject for boast-
ing ; I have none other.
For this reason I profess :

1. That I purpose to humble myself to all
creatures, considering and esteeming myself, and
desiring to be considered and treated in all things,
as the lowest of mankind.

2. That I hold in abhorrence all praise, honour,
and glory as a curse and a poison, according to Thy
words, 0 my Saviour : " Woe unto you when men
shall praise you " (S. Luke vi. 26) ; that I purpose
to embrace and love all contempt and humiliation
as the due of a miserable lost creature such as I
am, in my character of sinner and child of Adam,
of accursed child of wrath.

3. That I desire to be nothing in my own esteem
and in the esteem of others, so as henceforth to
have no self-seeking, no consideration, no esteem
of myself ; and, similarly, that I desire to be con-
sidered and esteemed by no one, desiring that
Thou alone shouldst be considered and esteemed.

36o

The Reign of Jesus

Good Jesus, eternal Truth, do Thou imprint
deeply these truths in my heart, and grant that
I may carry them out in practice by Thy great
mercy and for Thy greater glory.

Domine Jesu Christe,

Nihil sumus,
Nihil possumus,

Nihil valemus,

Nihil habemus praeter pec-

catum,
Servi inutiles sumus,

Natura filii irae,

Novissimi virorum,

Et primi peccatorum.

Nobis igitur confusio et

ignominia.
Tibi autem honor et gloria

in saecula saeculorum.

Amen.

Domine Jesu Christe, mise-
rere nobis.

O Lord Jesus Christ, we

acknowledge
That we are nothing,
That we are capable of

nothing,
That we are worth nothing,
That we possess nothing

save sin alone,
That we are unprofitable

servants,
That by nature we are

children of wrath,
That we are the lowest of

mankind,
That we are the chiefest of

sinners ;
To us, therefore, belong all

confusion and ignominy,
And to Thee all honour and

glory for ever and ever.
Amen.

O Lord Jesus Christ, have
mercy on us.

WEDNESDAY.
A PROFESSION OF CHRISTIAN SELF-ABNEGATION.

0 Jesus, my Lord and my God, I adore Thee,
uttering these words : " Whoso will come after
Me, let him take up his cross and follow Me "
(S. Matt. xvi. 24), and " Whoso doth not renounce
all things cannot be My disciple " (S. Luke xiv. 33).
I give myself to the spirit of light and grace with
which Thou didst utter them, that I may recognize
their importance, and that I may put them into
practice. By this divine light I recognize three

Elevations and Prayers 361

great truths, which oblige me to renounce myself
and all things. For I see :

1. That Thou alone art worthy to exist and to
act, and that, consequently, all other beings de-
serve to be reduced to nothingness in Thy presence.

2. That in order to be and to live in Thee,
according to Thine ardent desire, I must renounce
myself and all things else, because of the corruption
with which sin has infected both me and all things.

3. That by my sins I have deserved to be deprived
of everything, even of my life and of my very being.

For these reasons, in the strength of Thy grace,
and in union with the love which impelled Thee
to live denuded of all the things of this world ; by
the virtue of that divine Spirit which caused Thee
to utter those terrible words, " I pray not for the
world " (S. John xvii. 9), and those others, speak-
ing of Thine Apostles, " They are not of the world,
as I am not of the world." I profess :

1. That I purpose henceforward to consider the
world as excommunicate, as damned, as a hell, and
to renounce, wholly and for ever, all its honours,
riches, and pleasures.

2. That I purpose to take no satisfaction, no
pleasure, and no repose of mind in any of these
things, but to use them as not abusing them —
that is to say, without attaching any importance
to them, or in any way depending on them, but of
necessity only, in obedience to Thy holy Will
which so ordains, and for Thy glory alone.

3. That I purpose to live in this world of the
old Adam, as not of it, but as a citizen of the
other world, the world of the new Adam, which is
Heaven. That I even purpose to live in it as in
a hell — that is to say, not only with detachment,
but with hatred, hostility, and horror for all

362 The Reign of Jesus

therein ; with affection and longing for the world
to come ; with patience for the present time,
enduring it as Thou dost endure it, my Saviour,
notwithstanding the deep hatred that Thou hast
for it, and the infinite desire Thou hast to destroy
it and to reduce it to ashes, which desire Thou wilt
accomplish in the day of Thy wrath. Grant, O
Lord, that I may live in this world as a truly
Christian soul would live in hell if she were there
at Thy command. Grant me so to live on earth
that my mind, my heart, and my conversation,
may be in Heaven and in Thee, Who art my
heaven, my paradise, my world, and my all.

Besides this, 0 my Saviour, I purpose to go yet
further : I purpose to obey Thy word by which
Thou dost declare that, if I desire to come after
Thee, I must not only renounce all things, but
must also renounce myself. To this end I give
myself to the power of the divine love which
impelled Thee to renounce Thyself ; and in union
with this same love I profess :

1. That I renounce wholly and for ever all the
old Adam that is in me.

2. That I purpose to lay down at Th}7 feet, as
far as is possible, mine intelligence, my self-love,
my will, my life, my whole being ; beseeching Thee
most humbly Thyself to destroy me by Thy power,
that Thou mayst establish Thyself in me in order
to live, to reign, and to fulfil all Thy purposes in
me ; that so I may no longer live, no longer speak,
no longer act, in and of myself, but in Thee and
by Thee.

3. I make this profession, not only for the
present time, but for every moment and for every
action of my life, and I implore Thee with all
my heart thus to accept it and to grant me grace

Elevations and Prayers 363

to put it into practice, that I may say with Thy
holy Apostle : " Vivo, jam non ego : vivit vero in
me Chris tus " — " I live, yet not I, but it is Jesus
Christ Who liveth in me " (Gal. xi. 20).

THURSDAY.

A PROFESSION OF SUBMISSION AND ABANDON-
MENT OF SELF TO THE DIVINE WILL.

O my Saviour, I adore Thee, speaking these
divine words : "I came down from Heaven not
to do Mine own will, but the will of Him Who sent
Me " (S. John vi. 38). I adore Thee in the perfect
submission which Thou didst manifest in all things
to the will of Thy Father. I ask Thy forgiveness
for my frequent opposition to Thy holy W7ill, and
I give myself to Thy Spirit, to follow Thee hence-
forth in the practice of this virtue of submission.
By the light of this divine Spirit, I recognize that
it is Thy holy Will which governs and disposes
all things, either by an absolute command or by
permission. I recognize that Thou hast placed
me on earth solely to do Thy Will, and that con-
sequently this Thy Will is my object, my centre,
my element, and my supreme good. Therefore,
in union with the most perfect submission which
Thou, Thy holy Mother, and all Thy Saints,
showed to the divine Will, I profess :

1. That I renounce, wholly and for ever, my
will and all my desires and inclinations, and that
I desire never to have a will other than Thine ; to
keep my gaze fixed on it ; to obey it in all things
as perfectly as I can, and to yield myself up to it
body and soul, in life and in death, for time and
for eternity.

364 The Reign of Jesus

2. That I would rather die, or even endure a
thousand hells, than to do anything with intention
and deliberation against Thy most holy Will.

3. That I desire, neither in life nor death, in
this world nor in the world to come, any treasure,
any glory, any joy, any content, any paradise,
other than Thy most adorable Will. O most dear
Will of my God, Thou art henceforth my heart,
my soul, my life, my strength, my riches, my joy,
my honour, my crown, mine empire, and my
supreme good. Oh, live and reign in me perfectly
for ever !

FRIDAY.
A PROFESSION OF LOVE FOR JESUS AND MARY.

O most love-worthy Jesus, 0 most dear Mary,
Mother of my Jesus, I honour you in all your
perfections and in the deep love you bear one to
the other. I ask your forgiveness for having, up
to the present time, loved you so imperfectly, for
having so oft offended you. I give myself wholly
to the divine love which unites you, and in union
with this love, and with all the love of Heaven and
earth, acknowledging that I am in the world solely
to love and glorify you, I profess :

1. That I desire to serve and love you with all
my strength.

2. That I purpose to perform all my actions as
perfectly as I can for love of you.

3. That I would rather die than give to another
the least spark of love which I owe to you.

4. That I desire to find my happiness and
my delight in honouring, serving, and loving you.

5. That I will do all I can to cause others to
love and glorify you.

Elevations and Prayers 365

PROFESSION OF LOVE FOR THE CROSS.

0 Jesus, my crucified Love, I adore Thee in all
Thy sufferings. I ask Thy forgiveness for having
so often failed to bear as I ought the afflictions
Thou hast been pleased to send me. I give my-
self to the spirit of Thy Cross, and in this spirit
and with all the love of Heaven and earth I accept
with all my heart, for love of Thee, all the crosses
of mind and body which it shall please Thee to send
me. And I profess that I desire to find my glory,
my treasure, and my felicity, in Thy Cross — that
is to say, in humiliation, privation, and suffering,
saying with S. Paul : " Mihi autem absit gloriari,
nisi in cruce Domini nostri Jesu Chris ti " — " God
forbid that I should glory save in the Cross of my
Lord Jesus Christ " (Gal. vi. 14).

SATURDAY.

A PROFESSION OF CHRISTIAN CHARITY TOWARDS
OUR NEIGHBOUR.

O Jesus, God of love, I adore Thee in Thine ex-
ceeding charity, and I ask Thy forgiveness for all
the offences that I have ever committed against
this, the queen of all virtues. I give myself to
Thy spirit of charity, and in this spirit and in
union with the charity of Thy holy Mother and
of all Thy Saints I profess :

1. That I hate nothing save sin alone.

2. That I love all mankind for love of Thee.

3. That I purpose never to think or speak evil
of anyone ; never to do them any wrong, but to
think, judge, and speak well of everyone ; to
excuse and bear with the faults of others ; to make

366 The Reign of Jesus

excuses for everyone ; to have pity on the bodily
and spiritual miseries of my neighbour ; to strive
to do him good, and to bear myself to each and
all with gentleness, benevolence, and charity. O
eternal Charity, I give myself to Thee. Destroy
in me all that is opposed to Thee, and establish
Thy reign in my heart and in the hearts of all
Christians.

VII. Acts of Love to the Sacred Heart.

1. O admirable Heart of my Jesus, how it doth rejoice
my heart to see in Thee all the grandeur, all the treasures,
and all the marvels which are contained in all things,
both create and increate !

2. O divine Heart ! Who art the first object of the love
of the eternal Father, Who art also the first object of
Thine own love, I give myself to Thee, that I may be
plunged in the abyss of this same love for ever.

3. O adorable Heart of the Son of Mary ! my heart is
full of joy to know that Thou hast more love for this
most love-worthy Virgin than for all created beings, and
that her love for Thee surpasseth that of all other crea-
tures. Oh, I yield up my whole heart to this mutual love
of Son and Mother !

4. O most love- worthy Heart of my Saviour ! I offer
Thee all the love that burns for Thee in the hearts of all
the lovers of God, and I pray them to unite my heart
with theirs in this same love.

5. O Jesus ! rightful King and Sovereign of all hearts,
be Thou the King of my heart, and grant that I may be
all heart and all love for Thee, as Thou art all heart and
all love for me.

6. O most kind Jesus ! whither shall I flee from Thy
justice if Thou wilt not hide me in Thy heart ?

7. O admirable Heart ! principle of life, grant me to
live only in Thee and for Thee.

8. O most love-worthy Heart ! how dear have I cost
Thee, for Thou hast bought me at the price of the last
drop of Thy Blood ! Oh, how gladly would my heart shed
the last drop of its blood for Thee !

9. O most bountiful Heart ! Thou hast showered on me

Elevations and Prayers 367

Thy graces and Thy favours. May all the pulsations of
my heart be so many acts of love and praise to Thee !

10. O most gentle Heart ! Thou hast never let a moment
pass without loving me ; oh, let my heart beat only for
Thee !

11. O most charitable Heart ! Who died to give me
life, grant me to live Thy life and die Thy death, for Thy
love's sake.

12. O Jesus ! Thy Heart is all burning with most pure
love for me ; grant that I, too, may love Thee, not for my
own interest, whether temporal or eternal, but purely
and solely for love of Thee.

13. O my Jesus ! Thy divine Father hath put all
things into Thy hands, and Thy love holds Thy hands
open, that Thou mayst bestow them all on me ; grant
that all I have and all I am may be wholly Thine for ever.

14. O God of my heart ! grant that Thy love, which
caused Thee to die for me, may cause me too to die for
Thee.

15. O immeasurable Heart ! what is there greater than
Thou art ? Where find anything greater than that Heart
to Whom I have given mine ?

16. O Heart of Jesus ! It is Thou Who hast given me
my Jesus to be my treasure, my glory, my life, and my
all ; make me, I pray Thee, wholly His.

17. O only-begotten Son of God ! how can it be that,
being the Son of so good a Father, Thou art willing to
have so sinful a brother as I — and one who hath so
often offended Thine adorable Father ?

18. O Heart full of wisdom and light ! Who dost ever
think of me, and even of the least things which concern
me, grant that my mind and my heart may so cleave to
Thee that I may "serve Thee faithfully in small things as
in great.

19. 'O all-powerful Heart! employ Thy might, I be-
seech Thee, in destroying in my heart all that is dis-
pleasing to Thee.

20. O immeasurable Heart ! Who do'st love me in all
places, grant that I too may love Thee in all places and
in all things.

21. O most constant Heart ! Who dost love Thy friends
more in adversity than in prosperity, grant that I may
love Thee even more in time of affliction than in time of
consolation.

22. O Heart of the King of the humble ! abyss of

368 The Reign of Jesus

humility, annihilate in me all that is opposed to this holy
virtue, and make it to reign perfectly in my heart.

23. O most obedient Heart ! Who didst will rather to
lay down Thy life than to refuse obedience to Thy Father,
make me tenderly to love this holy virtue without which
it is impossible to please my God.

24. O Heart, more infinitely pure than all angelic
hearts, and Who art the source of all purity, imprint in
my heart a very great love for the virtue of purity and
an infinite horror of all that is opposed to it !

25. O Heart ! ardent furnace of love, destroy and con-
sume in us all that is opposed to this divine virtue, and
make it reign in the hearts of all the children of God.

26 O divine Heart ! Who can comprehend the infinite
hatred Thou hast of sin ? Imprint this hatred, I beseech
Thee, in our hearts, and grant that we may hate naught
else in the world save this infernal monster, who is the
sole object of Thy hate.

27. O Father of Jesus ! love Thy Son Jesus for me, and
make me to share in the love Thou dost bear Him.

28. O Jesus ! love Thy Father for me, and inflame my
heart with the love Thou dost bear Him.

29. O adorable Spirit ! Who art all love, all charity,
love, I beseech Thee, my tender Father and my most love-
worthy Jesus for me, and change my whole heart into
love for them.

30. O Jesus ! only-begotten Son of God, only Son of
Mary, love Thy holy Mother for me, and inflame my
heart with the love Thou dost bear her.

31. O Mother of Love ! love for me Thy Jesus and
mine, and make me to share in the love Thou hast for Him.

32. O blessed S. Joseph, S. Gabriel, S. Joachim,
S. Anne, S. John the Baptist, S. John the Evangelist,
S. Lazarus, S. Magdalene, S. Martha, all ye holy Apostles
and Disciples of Jesus, all ye holy Martyrs, all ye holy
Priests and Levites, all ye holy Virgins, and all ye other
Saints especially beloved by the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,
love Jesus and Mary, and beseech them to fashion me
after their Hearts, to number me amongst the children
of their Hearts, and to unite me for ever with the love you
bear them.

33. O my Jesus ! as Thy Father in giving Thee to me
hath also given me all things, all the hearts of the universe
belong to me; I offer Thee, therefore, all these hearts,
and I desire to love Thee with all the love of which they

Elevations and Prayers 369

were capable when Thou didst create them in order to
love Thee.

34. O my Jesus ! didst Thou not declare that Thou didst
come down to earth to kindle a fire, and that Thou hadst
no more fervent desire than this fire should kindle all
hearts ? Whence comes it, then, that the earth is full
of hearts which are ice to Thee ? It is sin which is the
sole cause of this. O accursed sin ! how willingly would
I consent to be reduced to ashes, so thou wert destroyed
in the souls of men !

35. O Heart of my Jesus ! immense furnace of love,
dart out Thy sacred flames into all the hearts of the
universe, that Thou mayst enlighten them with Thy
heavenly light, and consume them with Thy divine fires.

36. O good Jesus ! Who hast so loved the Cross for love
of me, that Thy Holy Spirit doth call the day of Thy great
suffering, the day of the joy of Thy Heart ; grant that I,
too, may love and accept with all my heart all the crosses
that may come to me, for love of my crucified Saviour.

37. O most loving Hearts of Jesus and of Mary ! Who
are but one Heart by unity of mind, of will, and of affec-
tion, grant that Your unworthy child may have but one
heart with You, and all other hearts which belong to You.

38. O Heart of Jesus ! as the Father of mercies and the
God of all consolations hath given Thee to me in giving
me my Jesus, and as Thou art, therefore, verily my heart ;
love, I beseech Thee, for me, all I ought to love, in the way
that my God desires of me.

39. O Hearts of Jesus and of Mary ! inestimable
treasure-houses of all good gifts, be You mine only
treasure, my refuge and my safeguard. It is to You that
I will have recourse in all my needs and necessities ; for
even should the hearts of all mankind deceive me and
forsake me, it is my firm trust that the most kind and
most faithful Hearts of my loving Jesus and His gentle
Mother will never deceive or forsake me.

40. Give ear, give ear, O ardent furnace of love ! It
is a little straw which prays most humbly and most
earnestly to be plunged, absorbed, lost, devoured, and
consumed for ever in the abyss of Thy sacred flames.*

* *' Le Cceur Admirable," tome viii., p. 304.

37° The Reign of Jesus

Dedication of this Book.

0 Jesus, be Thou All — All on earth, as Thou
art All in Heaven, All in all men and in all things.
Be Thou All in this little work which has from
Thee all that is good in it ; which speaks only of
Thee or for Thee, and which is intended to form
Thee and establish Thee in the souls of those who
shall make use of it. May all such see therein
only Jesus, may they learn therein only to love
and glorify Jesus. Be Thou All, 0 Jesus, in him
who wrote it and in those who read it ; for Thou
knowest, O my All, that I will never have, in life
or in death, any other purpose or desire than to
see Thee living and reigning in all men and in all
things. Do Thou live, therefore, O Jesus, do
Thou live and reign in us ; for whereas those un-
happy ones of whom Thou dost speak in Thy holy
Gospel did declare of Thee, " Nolumus nunc reg-
nare super nos " — " We will not have him to
reign over us " (S. Luke xix. 14), we, on the contrary
we will cry aloud before Heaven and earth :
" Volumus, Domine Jesu, te regnare super nos"
— " We will have Thee, Lord Jesus, to reign over
us." Do Thou, therefore, O my Jesus, live and
reign in us perfectly and absolutely, that we may
sing eternally this heavenly song : " Omnia in omni-
bus, Jesus " — " Jesus is All in all." Glory to
Jesus ! Glory to this great Jesus Who is All !
Glory to this great All which is Jesus ! Glory to
Jesus ! Glory to Jesus !

THE END.

R. & T. li'ashbourne, Ltd., Paternoster Row, London, E.C.

BX 2349 .E813 1911

SMC

Eudes, Jean, Saint,

1601-1680.
The rei gn of Jesus :

being an abridgment
AYY-4255 (mcih)

of

*$m$

<3

n

I library]

■■.: ■

v